Start of a Rebellion
by SomedayonBroadway
Summary: It's a tough life for the foster kids of Manhattan already. Now their school is trying to ship them off to the Refuge over nothing? Not if Jack Kelly has anything to say about it. (Modern AU).
1. chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies.**

A young, blond boy groaned as he opened his eyes to see the dark room he lived in. He couldn't have been more than fourteen. He sat up on the mattress that lay on the ground against the back wall, taking in the small, studio apartment. In all honesty, he'd rather be asleep at the moment, dreaming about running and jumping and laughing with his brothers. However, his aching leg made that hard. He glanced out the single window in the room, smiling as he saw the first glimmers of daylight outside, over the tall, New York buildings.

"'Ey... What're ya doin'?" Someone with a thick New York accent groaned, his words slurring together with exhaustion. "The alarm hasn't gone off yet, go back ta sleep." He practically begged, knowing if the other boy didn't go back to sleep, he couldn't either.

The younger boy laughed at the other's irritation. He pushed himself up, off the mattress that they shared, grabbing the metal crutch that lay next to him as he slept. "I wanna be up when the other fellas get here." The blond boy said, limping over to the small dresser that had been left there by the previous occupants of the apartment. He pulled open a drawer grabbing an old, grey sweater and an old cap. "I don't want the others ta see I ain't... I ain't been walkin' so good." He finally got out, a sad smile making its way across his face.

"Aw quit gripin'" The other boy groaned, sitting up as well. He dragged a hand over his sleepy features and the ran his other through his messy brown hair. "Ya don't see the guys running ta carry me all ova' the place." The older boy grabbed the flannel shirt that lay next to the bed and threw it on over his white and grey stripped tank top.

"If someone from the system spots us an' thinks I can't make it on my own, they'll lock me up in the Refuge for good." The green eyed fourteen year old stated, not wanting to give that all too much thought and knowing the other boy didn't either. That place was only a step short of hell. And the older of the two knew that all too well. "Cmon pal!" The crippled kid called enthusiastically, "don't make the others wait for ya again, Jack." He teased.

"Oh take a moment!" The older kid demanded, closing his eyes for a second. "Take in my... my penthouse." He smiled as he stood, now fully dressed walking over to open up the window and taking in the fresh air that filled the apartment.

"You're crazy." The blond boy laughed, joining his friend by the window. The other boy just laughed along with him before his face became more solemn a small yet bitter smile still held his lips.

"These stinkin' streets of New York sucked the life right out of my old man." Jack shook his head as he remember his eight year old self, confused when instead of his father walking through the door, lifting him up of the ground and kissing his forehead, a woman walked in, telling him that there was an accident. His father wasn't coming home.

"They ain't doin' that ta me." He vowed, looking over at the gimp beside him, his own green eyes meeting much more innocent, younger ones. No way he was abandoning this kid, his brother.

"Everyone wants ta come ta New York." The boy whispered, trying to lightly bring his friend out of the past.

"You keep your small life in the big city. Give me a big life, in a small town." Jack smiled as he thought about it more and more. "Cmon think about it! Goin' out west to Santa Fe? Shut your eyes! You can see the hills and the water and there ain't no buildin's in the way!" The image made him excited to get away from this awful place. "Every night your friends are sittin' around, tellin' stories and they neva' want ya ta leave. Ya got a family!"

"Sounds real nice." The younger boy agreed.

"Yeah." The Jack thought for a moment. Then he looked down at his friend's leg. "I bet no one worries about no gimp leg in Santa Fe." He thought. He held so much sympathy for the boy. The kid was dealt a crappy hand. He was born with leg that didn't work into a family that didn't care much about him. While Jack had gotten to age five with two loving parents and three more years with at least one, his brother, Christopher or Crutchie as most people called him now, had been given away by his own parents to his mother's brother. The man wasn't good to him. He'd beat on the boy who couldn't run away.

The hope in those sad green eyes were enough to break Jack's heart as he continued. "I bet'cha a few months of clean air and you could toss that crutch for good." When that smile broke out over Crutchie's young face, Jack knew he'd made the boy's day.

"No more beggin' no one ta treat us right, ey Jack?" The crip laughed, loving the idea of that.

"Those bastards ain't gonna beat us Crutch. Somewhere out there, there's a life that's worth livin'. We can work the land and chase afta' that bright sun." Jack smiled, wishing beyond everything he could take his brother there right now and give him the life he deserved.

"We can swim the whole Rio Grande for fun." Crutchie smiled. "Maybe when we get there I'll be able ta stand, even run!" The words came out too fast for the boy and the smile slowly fell from his innocent features. Sadly, he hobbled away from the older boy, not surprised when all Jack did was follow him to the kitchen counter.

"Ey." Jack tried, walking up behind his best friend in the world, trying his best to cheer the boy back up. "Ey! Don't ya know that we're a family? Would I let ya down?" He asked, slowly putting his arm around Crutchie's shoulders, smiling when the boy let him speak into his ear. "No way. Just hold on, kid, wait for that train to make it to Santa Fe." Jack hugged his brother, recalling what happened in life that got them this far.

For years, these two had been together. When Crutchie had been about six and Jack was nine, the two were put in a foster home together. Their foster family wasn't all that bad. They'd taken in Jack because they needed the money and would take half of what the government gave them to put it in their own pocket. Then they took in Crutchie because they thought the system would give them more for taken in a handicap. But they never laid a hand on them and Jack was grateful for that.

But months later, Jack had been caught stealing food and clothes for the boy he'd become so close to. They hadn't eaten in days and it was all the boy could do. But he was sent off to the jail for the misbehaving orphans. He was sent to the Refuge. Terrible things went on in there. He was beaten, starved, humiliated and the Spider didn't give a damn. The bastard let it happen, let those damn guards do whatever they wanted and sometimes the old man would even have his own fun.

Two months later, Jack broke out. He ran back to the boy he'd only met a year ago and he snuck him out of that house, then did the same with another boy and they lived on the streets together for years, meeting new kids and seeking refuge at an old theatre that a kind woman ran. They'd take up jobs and save up money till they could afford a crummy, old, run down apartment. But it was their home and they were thankful for it everyday.

Shouting from below their window snapped both boys out of their memories. "Time for dreamin's done." Jack sighed, making his way over to the window and looking down to find a bunch of teenage boys in the alleyway, fighting and yelling at each other. Immediately, Jack started calling out the main contributors of the noisiness. "'Ey! Specs! Racer! Henry! Elmer! Albert!" The group looked up at him in silence, waiting for him to continue. "Let's get a move on! These tests don't take themselves!"

 **Hello! This is not the first fanfic I've ever written, however it is the first one I've ever posted. I have written this story all the way through already and I will continue posting it as often as I can. Thank you for reading! Also, I won't complain about a couple reviews. ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

"'Ey Specs! Henry! Albert! Ya heard Jack!" A boy with an unlit cigar in his hand, Anthony, better known as Racetrack, called to his friends who had started bickering again. "Let's get a move on!" He called as he watched the two boys make it down the fire escape. Not that he'd ever admit it, but watching his crippled friend limp his way down those latters made his stomach twist in knots as all he wanted to do was carry him down himself. He sighed and stuck the cigar back between his teeth.

Another boy, Albert sighed and bumped his arm into Race's. "School sucks the life right outta me. I was havin' the most beautiful dream last night." He sighed, as if he was deep in thought about it.

"Oh!" Race teased. "A pretty girl?" He asked, smiling. But the other boy held out his hands out in front of him as if he was holding something.

"A leg of lamb." He sighed like it was the most precious thing in the world. Race laughed right along with the other boys, even though they all knew they dreamed about things like that too. But just as the boy with curly blond hair was about to stick the cigar back in his mouth, it was snatched right out of his hand.

"Hey! That's my cigar!" Race shouted, getting up in Albert's face as he demanded his possession back. The other kid looked at him and rolled his eyes.

"Go steal another!" He shot back, before Race snatched the cigar right back. But Albert laughed as he knew that is how his friend had gotten his hands on the first one.

"Settle down fellas!" A boy with glasses, Specs called, slinging an arm around both of his friends.

"Hey boys!" Jack greeted as he helped his little brother down from the latter and settled him on his crutch. "Let's go!" And they were off.

The group of boys was lead by Specs and Elmer and at the rear was held up by Jack, Crutchie and Race. Jack stood in the middle of them and was carefully watching Racetrack. He was sure no one missed the bruise forming around the kid's eye.

Race continued walking. He could feel his friends eyes boring into him, watching him carefully, waiting for him to admit he was in pain or anything and eventually he just sighed. "I know what you're thinkin' Jackie boy." He muttered, a sad smile working its way onto his face. He looked at the ground as he spoke. "I just wasn't careful enough this mornin' is all." He explained quickly.

Crutchie glanced over at his friends. "They hurt ya, Race?" He asked in a small voice.

Race smiled and looked over at the boy. "I'm fine Crutch." He assured, not at all prepared for the little bundle of a thirteen year old that came running at him. He ran straight past everyone, giving them high fives and short hugs, making his way to Race who scooped him up off the ground, hoping that no one saw him wince as he did so. Sadly, he discovered he was wrong when he saw Jack's look of worry when he walked on.

"Hey Romeo!" Race greeted, ignoring everything else around him. He smiled, knowing the kid was always good for a laugh. "How's it goin' kiddo?"

"It was fine this mornin'." Romeo shrugged, and that made all the boys happy to hear.

Most of the boys were stuck in homes that didn't want them or only kept them for money. They were very happy that Romeo wasn't one of them. He was in a home where the folks didn't pay too much attention to him but they never laid a hand on him. And all the others were grateful for that.

"I'm glad ta hear that, Rome." Race sighed. He held the boy close as they walked to their schools. "How's Haley?" He asked, chuckling at the kid he was so protective of. He wasn't sure if it was because of how close they'd become or because he was the one who'd found the kid, shivering behind a dumpster in an alleyway.

Originally he'd asked Jack to take him in. And the older boy had done just that. Romeo lived with Crutchie and Jack for about two weeks before the system found him and put him in a home.

"Haley ditched me." Romeo said sadly. Just as Race was about to give his condolence the young brunettes frown melted into a smile. "But Lila comes by everyday to clean our house now." Every one of the boys laughed at that. This kid was definitely something.

As they rounded a corner, a giant building was seen. From the outside, it looked like an ok place. But once inside, every one of Jack's boys doubted they'd ever get to see the sun again. There was an arch as an entrance to the place and in big bold letters it read "The World High School".

Race put Romeo back on the ground and took his hand. "I'll be right back fellas!" He called as he started running with the little kid. "I gotta take Rome ta his school!"

"Don't be late today Race!" Albert yelled after him, his hands cupped around his lips. "I can't take Weasel all by myself!" He joked and laughed when the other boy rolled his eyes before disappearing around the corner.

Jack sat around with his boys on the brick walls that were placed right in front of the schools entrance. He sat with Crutchie on his right, his arm slung over the smaller boy's shoulders. They all just sat before the doors would be shut and they'd be trapped for the next seven hours. Jack let his eyes wander until his eyes fell on something. No not something, someone. A girl... a woman.

Jack was instantly captured by this girl. She looked to be about the same age as Jack. Her beautiful brown hair fell perfectly around her face and down below her shoulders. It was clipped out of her face so he could see her curious, adventurous, brown eyes. Her jeans fit perfectly around her hips and legs and her button up shirt looked adorable with her little tie completing her professional look. On her hands she held a notepad and a pencil.

Crutchie noticed his brother go quiet. All his other friends still laughed and joke around him but he followed Jack's gaze, smirking as he saw where it lead. "She's pretty." He commented, patting his brother on the shoulder.

Jack shook his head, blushing as he looked to the ground, pretending not to know what Crutchie had been talking about. But sadly, Albert had heard the comment.

"Cmon Jack, go talk ta her." He teased shoving his friend forward, off of his seat on the wall. And Jack was on his feet, too proud to turn back to his boys and admit he was afraid of talking to this woman.

"Hey there miss." He smiled, charmingly as he leaned against the fence that lined the whole school. He watched as she looked at him in surprise. "May I interest you in a tour of the Boys World High School?"

She smiled, as if laughing at the boy's request. "Um, no thank you. I'm just leaving." She said, turning around, but Jack's voice stopped her.

"Oh why so soon?" He asked, his flirtatious voice practically begging her to stay.

She laughed. "I've got a little news flash for ya." She held out her hands as if her next words were plastered on some sort of billboard. "Cheeky boy get nothing for his troubles." She joked. Then she turned and walked off, leaving Jack there to watch her leave as he tried to memorize everything about her.

"Oh back ta the bench slugger!" One of the boys, laughed. "You struck out.

"She'll be back Finch." Johnny, or better known as the boy who takes pictures of birds, Finch laughed and put his arm around Jack.

"Sure she will Jack!" The other boy, Peter, also known as Specs due to his iconic glasses, slapped his friend on the back as the met back with their group and made their way into the school. Racetrack only barely made it inside as the ten minute bell rang, before the doors were locked and any late kids would be sent through the front office for a detention slip.

"Alright step aside!" Race, Crutchie, Albert and Jack all groaned as they heard the voice of one Oscar Delancy echoing through the hallway as the five minute bell rang. They stood at their lockers which were right next to each other, gathering their books for their first class when the school's two star baseball player came strolling down the halls of The World. Before Jack could shut up his young friend Racetrack, who had such a big mouth, the boy was already talking.

"Dear me, what is that unpleasant aroma?" The cocky sixteen year old waved his hand in front of his nose, his face crumbling up in disgust. "I fear the sewer may have backed up durin' the night." He joked, knowing full well they'd be able to smell that from their crappy school.

"Or could it be...?" Jack sighed as he realized there was no stopping the inevitable now that Crutchie had spoken up.

"The Delancey brother's?" Albert joined in with the other two, yelling the baseball players' names making sure the whole school heard them. Jack started getting nervous at this point. He knew he could take the Delancey's but his brothers didn't quite have that skill mastered yet.

These two boys were not only high school bullies. It's been said they beat people up for gangs around town to earn extra cash. It scared Jack to death to think about them going after one of his boys with a baseball bat.

"Ya know Jack," Oscar started, in a threatening tone, moving closer to the group, giving them the illusion that he was going after Jack before grabbing Racetrack by the collar of his t-shirt and pounding him against the lockers. Albert called out as Race winced, anger rising in all of them as the other boy tried to push Oscar away and was only rewarded with another harsh smack into the metal, the hand on his chest growing heavier. "You should keep a stronger hold on your dogs here before they end up in the pound to be put down." Race growled but made no move to get up, knowing the Delancy was stronger than him.

Morris then walked up to Crutchie, gripping the boy's crutch in his hand. "Ya want some of this too, ya lousy crip?" He pulled out the metal crutch that helped the boy stand from underneath his arm and pushed the boy to the ground, only to be caught by Albert.

Morris stood tall in front of Jack, trying to scare the other boy. Jack simply glared up at him. "Now that's not nice, Morris." He scolded, grabbing his brother's crutch back.

"Five ta one Jack skunks 'im." Race smiled, his drunk father's gambling still evident in him. Oscar just turned to him and held a fist in front of his face in an attempt to shut him up.

"One of these days," Jack stated, walking in between both of the bullies, still holding the metal crutch in his hand. "Ya might find ya have a bum leg of your own. How'd ya like us pickin' on you, huh?" Jack seemed to pause for thought before continuing. "Oh hey! Why don't we find out?" He hit both of the boys in the legs real hard with the metal crutch.

Oscar dropped Race to clutch his injured leg and Morris fell to the ground in pain. "Just wait till I get my hands on you!" Oscar growled, not noticing that Albert had let Crutchie onto his back and they'd all shut their lockers, ready to go to class.

"Ya gotta catch me first!" Jack yelled as he gestured for his brothers to follow. The four laughed as they ran to their first period, hearing the sound of angry yelling behind them.

 **Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know by reviewing! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

"Alright line up!" An old man yelled as a whole bunch of boys ran up to his classroom as the bell rang. "Your ticket to a good class today is turning in your papers."

"Mornin' Weasel." Jack smirked, being the first to walk in the room, slamming his paper down on the teacher's desk.

"I told ya a hundred times," the man groaned. "It's Wiesel." He rolled his eyes as the student laughed.

"Ain't that what I said?" The boy smiled as his boys laughed behind him. If there was anything about this orphan school for boys he liked, it was being with his brothers everyday.

"Take a seat." Wiesel sighed.

"Hey Weasel." Race greeted, strolling into the classroom after hiding his unlit cigar in his pocket.

"At least call me mister." The man asked, hating his nickname among the boys.

"I'll call ya sweetheart if ya give me an extension on the paper." That's when all the boys knew. Race was an excellent actor and could fool anyone who didn't know him well. He had walls that seemed impossible to break down, but showing up to school with a black eye and asking Weasel for an extension instead of flat out telling him he didn't feel like doing it? That was something that Race only did when he had a bad night. And everyone could guess why. Well anyone who'd known Race for what felt like forever and had every class everyday with him.

"You know the rules Racer. No extensions. Not my rules, I just enforce 'em." Wiesel said, not even looking up at the boy. Unlike most of the staff at this school, he knew all the nicknames of the boys in his class. He wasn't one that really cared about them though.

"Well what eva' happened ta romance?" Race joked.

"Move along." He said. Race sighed but practically collapsed in the seat next to Jack.

"Mornin' Mister Wiesel." Crutchie tried his hardest not to be rude to adults. He figured that it was better to be nice to them than be beaten by them, so he did the one thing that made him unique among all the others. He was polite.

"Have a seat Crutchie." And the boy took his seat in front of Jack. Finally, the teacher looked up from his desk, finding a face he'd never seen before. "Hey look at this! A new kid!"

Jack looked up at the tall boy. He had dark brown hair that almost looked black. His smile was nervous but genuine and he stuck his hands in his pockets, afraid of making a wrong move.

"Take a seat." Weasel gestured to the desks and the boy just nodded.

"Hey pal." Jack said, as the tall boy took a seat beside him, the opposite of Racetrack. "What's your name?"

"My names David Jacobs." The boy answered, clearly a bit uncomfortable.

"Nice ta meet ya, Davey." Jack nodded, hearing Albert walking up to the teacher, holding up a finger as a sign to Davey to put the conversation on pause, wanting to hear the kid's joke of the day.

"You have a very interesting face." Albert commented as he put his paper down. "Eva' think of getting into the movin' pictures?" He asked, looking off into the distance like he was daydreaming.

"You really think I could?" Wiesel asked, thinking the boy might actually be giving him a compliment.

"Sure buy a ticket. They let anyone in." Albert shrugged, like it was obvious, making all the boys laugh. The jokester smacked Race's outstretched hand as he walked passed him and slid into the seat behind him.

"How's about I show ya the ropes of the school later? Whaddya say?" Jack offered, returning to his conversation with the new kid.

"I'm no ones charity case." The boy said, defensively. "I don't even know you."

"This here's the famous Jack Kelly!" Crutchie butted in. He lowered his voice as he spoke again. "He once escaped jail in the back of the mayor's own car." He stated, and Jack smiled as he realized the kid was still amazed he'd done such a thing.

"Cmon, just let me show ya how ya stay outta trouble for a day?" He asked. Ever since he'd been a victim of the streets of New York, he'd promised himself he'd never let anyone else have to suffer through the pain of going at something scary and new alone. He genuinely just wanted to help, though he came off as cocky and arrogant.

"Fine. But just for today." The new boy responded.

Jack smiled and spit into his hand, holding it out to the other boy to shake. The new kid simply glanced at it and looked back up, before saying in an even tone, "that's disgusting." Jack laughed along with all the other boys.

"Well that's just the price of doin' business." David sighed before spitting in his own hand and shaking the other boys. And before they new it, the line at the door was gone and Weasel was telling them to open their text books to page 47.

 **Hey guys! I'm super excited that I'm actually getting some reviews! Thank you guys so much! And for everyone else, don't be afraid to tell me what you think! I love constructive criticism. Anyways, I'll probably update later today at some point. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yup I'm back already. Truth is, it's summer break and I have nothing else to do with my life. I have a lot of these stories that I've been writing for myself for the past few years and I'm excited for everyone to read them. This fanfic in particular has at least three sequels. So if you like it, it'll actually get way more intense. But yeah, here's the next chapter, enjoy. ;)**

"Ladies and Gentlemen," a well dressed, bearded man greeted, sitting down in front of a room full of a few of The World's high school staff. "It has recently come to my attention that it's been years since we've improved the curriculum here. The young boys that come in here do as little work as is necessary. They think that doing the minimal amount of work will get them out of here somehow."

"Well, Mister Pulitzer" one of the teachers, Seitz, spoke up. "The boys that are here now don't do anything to set an example. They all slack off and make fun of all of us teachers. They don't show any respect to us." He placed his hands on his hips, glancing around the room to be met with nods from the three other staff members in the room.

"Why is this, do you think?" The man, owner of the school and current principal, asked. "How can we teach them some respect?"

"With all do respect, sir," another man, Bunsen, spoke nervously, wringing his hands. "Most of these boys have already had it hard. Many of them have been in orphanages or are in homes that don't really care much about them."

"Well that's just a lesson they had to learn." The man shrugged, standing up straight from the chair he'd been occupying behind the desk he sat at. He adjusted his jacket as he rounded the desk, leaning against the front of it. "Life is no easy thing. I couldn't teach them a better lesson if they were my own."

"So how did you want to make them see us differently?" The only woman in the room, Hannah Bowery, asked, her voice showing no real emotion except for boredom. "They're teenage boys," she added, obviously. "They won't just sit there and listen to us."

"Well a lot of them seem to be very close." The last of them, Nunzio, added.

"Especially that group of boys that..." Bunsen paused as he though about the name of the boy who lead that group. "Kelly! Jack Kelly's classmates. They are the worse offenders."

"We could separate them." Bowery tried. "If they aren't together during class what more damage could they do?" She shrugged, not knowing what else they could do.

"That won't help any." Seitz rebutted. He shook his head as he addressed Pulitzer. "They show up late, they skimp on their homework, they make a mess of the campus. I see only one solution." The man concluded, as everyone else turned to listen to him, intrigued. "The Refuge."

The only one to show any sort of concern was Bowery. They all knew what happened in that place. Snyder, the head of it, was a greedy man. He didn't give a damn about the kids, all he cared about was how much money he could gain.

"Think about it," the man continued. "If we make it out policy that five tardies, or ten missing assignments get them landed in the Refuge for two weeks, they won't dare do it ever again. We can start by taking the kids who already have that much and putting them in there as an example."

"Now Seitz," Pulitzer walked up to the man. "That would be way to hard on those kids." He then paused and walked up to the other man, smiling evilly, "make it ten tardies."

"It's going to be awfully rough on those children." Bowery tried.

"Hannah, these kids are only gonna learn from this, and that's the bottom line. The policy will start up tomorrow morning, starting with the first offenders." He sighed, rounding back around the desk to his computer and quickly typing something and hitting the search button. "Besides, there's only one boy who has that many tardies."

"Who?" Bunsen asked, curiously, somewhat leaning over the desk to take a look.

"The boy that every teacher has complaints about." He stated, like it was obvious. "Anthony Higgins."

 **There you have it! I hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review! And if you have any suggestions for stories that involve these characters, just let me know and I'll take them into consideration. Love ya babes!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello again! Wow two days and I'm on chapter 5 already. I guess that's what happens when you have no life and an already completed story.**

 **A shout out to KatherineRoseTiggular and** **Teeloganroryflan for reviewing! I'm so glad you guys like this story and I hope you all continue reading. As I said before, this is the first of a series.**

 **Enjoy!**

When the bell rang at the end of the day, all the boys smiled with relief. Davey and Jack had been talking all day, Jack teaching him all the basics of the school and Davey was starting to come around.

He'd start off by letting Dave know all about the staff at this "prestigious" school. The teachers were hit and miss. Weasel would mess around with them and tease them but would still hurt them if it came down to it. Seitz certainly didn't care about them at all and was the teacher to pay attention to, being that he'd go pick on students he knew wouldn't know the answer. Bunsen wasn't all that bad. He didn't really wanna be at this school either so he had the easy class. Miss Bowery was one of the only teachers to take any kind of pity on the boys at all. She'd be the one to make it easier on them. But the arts teacher was definitely the one to run to if and kinda trouble was circling in.

Miss Medda Larkin. She taught arts at the World and ran a theatre across the street. She had the biggest heart Jack had ever seen. When the African American woman had first met him, she wanted to take him in, but Jack had quickly told her that she couldn't, because he had to take care of his boys. They'd met when Jack, Crutchie, Race, Albert, Elmer and Specs, the only boys in the group at the time, had been seeking shelter from a storm one night and they came across a theatre. The group had hid backstage, trying to get warm and she'd stumbled across them. They'd always run to her for advice or help with anything.

Jack had then moved on to telling him to avoid the Delancy brothers; the biggest jerks to ever walk the planet. They'd stomp anyone to the ground that got in their way and if the school's staff asked them to teach a student a lesson, they'd do it for the money. They were ruthless.

Last came the principal. He would do whatever he could just to make himself look good in the eyes of the public. He wanted his school for orphan boys to be the best. He wanted to have the most money and the smartest kids. He was a greedy man who didn't care about the boys' health one bit.

He told Davey how to act in front of certain people to not get in trouble and how to roam the halls with the least amount of obstacles in his way. And most importantly, he told Davey about his boys and how they were the world to him and how he protected them with everything in him. And how he would treat all his friends like that.

"We friends now or what?" Jack asked as he picked up his bag, standing up along with David and following all the other boys to the door of the classroom.

"Yeah Jack." Davey smiled, "We're friends." He gave Jack a slap on the back before following his new friend and his new friend's brothers out the door.

"Ya wanna come ta the diner?" Jack asked as they made their way out of the school. "All my boys go there after school. I, uh... I work there." He specified, for some reason nervous of telling this boy that he had a job.

"I have ta pick up my kid brother from the elementary school." Davey answered, starting to walk away. Jack watched him for a minute, glancing over and seeing all his friends walking to the diner, save for Racetrack and Romeo. The older was probably at the middle school waiting for the kid's school to let out. He sighed before running up to his new friend.

"I'll walk with ya." He said. "It ain't that far and I ain't gotta be at Jacobi's till three." He shrugged. David nodded his head and allowed the other boy to follow him.

They walked the small distance to the elementary school, which was just around the back of the high school, right next to the middle school. Jack and Davey waited outside the front gate for the new kid's kid brother.

"So these boys," Davey started, "how long have you known them?" He asked, curiously.

Jack smiled, thinking back to years ago when he'd first met the first of his boys. "I actually met Race first. We met on the streets when we was both really little. Then we got separated for a while cause of certain events and I met Crutchie after that." He stated. "They are my best friends. I'd do anything for them. For all my boys." The cocky teen looked down and thought for a moment. "I've known the first of my boys for ten years now."

David's eyes widened at this but he couldn't comment on it as a small boy, no more than ten years old, bounced into his arms and he lifted him up.

"Hey Les!" David greeted.

"Hi David!" The boy laughed. He hugged his big brother around the neck and then his eyes caught Jack's. "Who are you?" He asked, curiously.

"Les, this is a friend of mine." Davey assured. "This is Jack."

"Nice ta meet ya, kid." Jack said, holding his hand up for the kid to shake, which he did with the biggest smile Jack thought he'd ever seen. He then looked up at his new friend and asked him, "you wanna bring your kid brotha' ova' ta Jacobi's? I'm sure all the boys would love 'im."

"We can't." Davey answered, putting his little brother back on the ground and standing up to talk to Jack. "Our folks'll be waitin' for us." The tall boy immediately regretted the words as he remember what school he'd just been at and the look on Jack's face only made his guilt worsen.

"You got folks." It wasn't a question, just more of a statement of acknowledgement. Davey wasn't sure if it was in a good way either.

"Doesn't everybody?" Sweet, innocent Les. The kid didn't know the troubles of the world yet and looking down at that innocent face, Jack wasn't sure he'd ever be able to break the bad news to the kid that the world was no fairytale.

"Les..." Davey warned, pulling Les closer to him. "I'm sorry." He quickly apologized. The he hesitated before explaining, "our parents used to send us to a private school but... the money we had, it's gone now. So they have ta send us here for now." He paused before saying again, "I'm sorry, J-"

"Nah it's fine." Jack assured, nodding his head. "Listen, I'll see ya tomorrow." Jack supplied as he looked at the time. He still had a half hour, but he knew he'd need to get going soon and he needed time to process the new information.

"Hey I'm sure our folks wouldn't mind havin' ya over for dinner." Davey offered, but Jack shook his head as he backed away.

"No it's ok, I still got work and I gotta meet the fellas back there-" Jack started to back up more and would later be so glad that Les stood straight in front of his brother and pointed to a man walking up to Jack.

"Is that the guy you're meetin'?" Jack's heart stopped. 'Guy?' He thought, turning around. When he was met with the face of a spider he bent down and whispered urgently,

"Run for it!" And took off with the two kids running behind him. He knew where to go, and he knew that if he didn't get there life wouldn't be looking good for him or his boys. Not at all. He stole a glance backwards catching the man he was so scared of, running right at him.

"Kelly!" He screamed, his mean features maybe etched in Jack's nightmares for the rest of his life.

He ran around the back of the elementary school, finding the back of the high school as well. They ran along the back of the school, while he heard Davey yelling behind him asking him why they were running and who that man was. Finally they rounded a corner and ran a block away from the school. On the side of one of the buildings over there, Jack found a door and all but knocked the damn thing down.

Once inside, Jack slammed the heavy door shut and leaned against it. "I think we lost 'im." He said between gasps of breath.

"Anyone wanna tell me why I'm running?" Davey panted, his hand on his little brother's back as the boy hunched over, trying to catch his breath. "I ain't got no one chasin' me!" He stopped for a moment and caught Jack's shaken face. "Who was that guy?"

As he'd expected of the guy who showed him around, when Davey showed concern, Jack became stone hard, the emotion of fear not making its way to his face any longer. "That there was Snyder the Spider."

By the way that he said it, Davey could practically feel the hatred radiation off his friend for that man.

Jack walked forward and for the first time, Davey noticed they were in a theatre of some sort. They'd entered the door that lead to the side of the room, right next to stage left.

"Snyder's a real sweetie." Jack continued as he walked into the room further. "He runs an orphanage for kids that 'misbehave'." He said, using hand quotes. "For every kid that gets sent there, the prison gets more money." The word prison was spat out, making it clear that Jack hated this place. It must've been really bad. "Problem is, all that money goes straight into 'is own pocket." Jack stopped turning around, taking in Davey's concerned face and Les' confused one. He then bent down so he was level with the kid. "Do yourselves a favor, stay clear of Snyder and the Refuge, alright?"

Davey nodded and held onto Les' hand, walking with Jack into the auditorium. If there was one thing Davey would remember from that whole day, it was that Snyder was bad news and even the legendary protecter Jack Kelly, was afraid to be stuck in the man's company.

 **Yay! End of chapter 5! I hope you enjoyed it! Next chapter will feature, yup you guessed it! Everyone's favorite- Miss Medda Larkin! I'll probably update in a few hours, if not I will tomorrow morning! Thanks for reading! See ya kids! :D**


	6. Chapter 6

"Alright girlies!" A woman's voice yelled from the very back of the theatre. "Take it one more time from the top of the number! It's gotten a lot better!" She clapped as she stood, a pencil and notebook in hand as she watched her team rehearse. As she walked to a different corner of the room, she spotted at least two boys walking around in the house, coming to cause trouble she assumed.

"Hey! No kids in the theatre!" She yelled, walking towards them and shooing them away with her hands.

"Not even me Miss Medda?" Jack asked sweetly, his face breaking into a grin at the sight of the woman who'd been the closest thing he'd ever had to a mother.

Medda smiled widely as she realized who it was that had snuck into her theatre. "Jack Kelly." She chuckled, wagging her finger at him. "Man of mystery. Get over here and give me a hug." Jack gladly obeyed as he wrapped his arms around the woman. "Where ya been, kid?"

"Neva' too far from you, Miss Medda." He said, pulling away and looking at the woman, impressed at the beauty of her. She laughed and swatted him away, playfully. "Boys may I introduce you to the finest gal you'll eva' meet? Miss Medda Larkin."

Davey offered the kind woman a handshake. "It's a pleasure, really." Les nodded his head in agreement and followed his big brother's example, offering out his hand. The woman laughed as she shook it, never knowing a ten year old to be so polite.

"Medda, we got a little situation outside. Mind if we hide out here for a few minutes?" Jack asked, his face normal, but Medda could see the pleading of his big green eyes.

"Honey, there is no better place to escape trouble than Medda Larkin's theatre." She laughed, wrapping her arm around Jack's shoulder, giving him a quick side hug. "Is Snyder after you again, baby?"

Jack lowered his head and nodded, watching his hands wring themselves in circles. He smiled bitterly at the name. "If he catches me now, I don't know if I'll be able to pull off another miraculous escape."

Davey didn't think he would ever meet a guy quite like Jack. Jack was confident and collected at every point. He never really showed weakness, not even when someone touched his boys. During school, when JoJo had been threatened by a couple of football players, Jack had just gotten in their faces. He didn't ask or beg, he just protected them with his confidence and strength. But he was now seeing the side of Jack that wasn't sure of everything. Davey really was starting to like this boy, he thought.

"You escaped from jail?!" Les exclaimed, curiously and excitedly, looking up to Jack like he was some sort of God.

"In the back of the mayor's own limo." Jack said, proudly, recalling the day he'd escaped from that awful place and reunited with his brothers, Crutchie and Race.

"You know the mayor?" Les gasped, stepping closer to Jack. The older boy smiled and laughed a little.

"He doesn't." Medda corrected. "But I do." She smiled, looking off into the distance as if recalling a romantic memory.

Davey's eyes widened slightly as Medda said this, looking over at Jack who lifted his eyebrows and nodded. Medda was definitely a exceptional gal.

"Oh Jack!" The woman pointed at the boy and her gaze fell to the floor like she had just remembered something. "Before I forget, I'd love it if you could paint me another one of these backdrops when you got some time." She gestured to the stage.

Davey turned around and his jaw dropped. The backdrop was beautiful. It was big and running through the middle of it was a river in between a thousand trees. It was perfectly created, almost as if it had been sculpted on a computer. But according to Medda, Jack had painted that.

"And things are going so well, I can actually pay you." She added with a song in her voice.

"I could never take your money Miss Medda." Jack countered before Davey cut in.

"You painted that?" He asked, dumbfounded. Jack nodded with a shy smile. "You're really good!"

"Whoa calm down." Jack protested. "It's a bunch of trees."

"Nope he's right Jack." Medda smiled at David. "You've got natural aptitude."

"Whoa I've never known anyone with aptitude!" Les' mouth dropped open. Jack laughed down at the amazed ten year old. He didn't know if he could take much more of the innocent kid that he was starting to like too much.

"Alright well, we should get goin'." Davey stated, grabbing onto his kid brother's hand. "I'll see ya tomorrow Jack." He called before finding the door and heading out.

"See ya Davey, see ya Les!" Jack called before they were gone. He then turned back to Medda before he glanced up and saw something he definitely wasn't expecting to see. Up in the small balcony of the amazing theatre, he caught sight of a girl. No... a woman. The most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. It was the same girl from earlier.

Medda stood for a moment, waiting for the chatterbox of a kid to open his mouth and say something. When he didn't, she realized where his gaze had gone. Up to the balcony. She smiled, knowingly and bumped his shoulder a bit.

"You know, she's been up there for a while." The woman stated. "I'm sure she could use some company." Medda watched as her favorite deep green eyes lit up with excitement.

"Thanks Medda." Jack then jogged away, heading to the stairs in the foyer.

 **Hello again! Thank you for reading and please be sure to leave a review! Love ya babes! See ya in a little bit. ;)**


	7. Chapter 7

"Well hello again." Jack greeted, smoothly as he made his way up the stairs to see the girl he'd just met and was falling too fast for. "Twice in one day! Ya think it's fate?" The boy asked with a cheeky grin.

The girl looked over at him, surprised to hear a voice up there with her, but when she saw the boy walking up to her, the expression on her face quickly changed to one of annoyance. "Please go away, I'm working."

Jack's eyes widened in surprise. This girl couldn't be more than seventeen years old. What could she possibly be doing? "A working girl, huh? Doin' what?" He sat down in the seat next to her and looked over at the laptop she was typing away at.

She looked up and sighed, bending the lid of the computer down so the boy couldn't see her work. "I'm an intern for a news company. They go to Sunnyside to find students that want to be reporters." She explained. "They asked me to write about the difficulties of theatre."

Ah, Sunnyside. The private school for the spoiled rich kids that surrounded Jack. "Well I can assure you," Jack smiled. "You came to the best theatre in the city and ya got the best view."

"Please go," she begged. "I'm not in the habit of talking to strangers." She tried, opening her laptop back up and continuing to type away on in.

Jack laughed. "You're gonna be a pretty lousy reporter then." He saw her roll her eyes before adding, "The names Jack Kelly." He extended his hand to her but she only simply glanced at it and then blatantly ignored it.

"Is that what it says on your rap sheet?" Jack knew he should be offended by her sarcastic comments but the fact was, they only intrigued him more.

"Oh a smart girl, huh?" He laughed, backing away a bit in his seat, as if he was really offended. And if she knew anything about his past, he might've been. But this girl... beautiful, smart, independent...

Jack looked to the ground and saw an old program, probably from the last show. An idea sparked in his head and he grabbed it, turning it over to the blank back page. He grabbed the pencil that was in his back pocket and quickly started a sketch, knowing the beautiful girl next to him wouldn't even notice him because she was too sucked into her work.

Suddenly, everything Jack had ever known about the world was different. All of the sudden he wanted to take this girl for a midnight stroll in the moonlight, dancing and laughing together all night. He wanted to sit down for hours trying to write the perfect poem for her, just to see her smile.

But he stopped himself. After all, love at first sights for sucker. At least it was. Jack didn't know anymore. Sure he'd have his run in with girls but he'd never get past a second date with her before he was done. But this girl, this woman made him rethink everything he'd ever known about love. He certainly never planned on someone like her.

He knew it was getting to about the time he needed to get to work. But he still had a few minutes to master this sketch. It was possibly the most beautiful thing he'd ever drawn. He got the waves in the hair just right and the eyes were soft and caring. Her smile was small and shy, but it was stunning. She was perfect.

Jack blew away the dust left by the pencil and admired his handy work for a moment before smiling widely and checking the time on his small, flip phone. His eyes widened. Five minutes and he had to be at work. He set the program down next to the girl he was quickly falling for before making his way down to the exit, without saying a word.

Boys definitely were something, the girl thought as she caught him leaving. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't shocked he didn't say anything. She'd also be lying if she said she didn't find him very intriguing. Something about him made her smile. She shook her head as she looked back to her laptop, but something caught her eye.

She gently picked up the program and held it in her hands, admiring it. It only took her a moment to realize that that is how this guy, Jack Kelly, saw her. She may have stared at that drawing for twenty minutes before she decided...

It was flawless. Absolutely perfect. She may never feel as special as she felt right in that moment ever again. But then again...

 **I love them. Katherine is one of my heros. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the last chapter before all hell breaks loose for the boys. Maybe tonight I'll post the next chapter. See ya then!**

 **Please make sure to review! I always love to hear what you guys have to say! Thanks for reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

Jack swore he was about to lose it and go insane. The bell had rung twenty minutes ago and Weasel sat in the front of the class, absolutely silent. Finch stared mindlessly out the open window, watching some bird. Albert's leg bounced up and down in complete boredom. Elmer's head was hidden in his folded arms, heavy breathing was heard from the boy. Specs took his glasses off and cleaned them for the tenth time and Henry anxiously tapped his fingers on the desk. Mush slumped down in his chair and his head was practically resting on his own back, his mouth hung open as he lightly snored. Sniper sat silently, pulling back his pencil and then almost letting it shoot forward and Buttons slumped back in his chair playing with his sweatshirt.

Crutchie and Davey both sat respectively, and Crutchie would occasionally lean back and whisper something to Jack, asking if he knew what was happening. Jack would simply answer with no everytime. Racetrack shifted every few minutes, tapping his pencil on the table, bouncing his legs up and down, running a hand through his hair. He had been late again today and he told Jack that every staff member seemed to be giving him looks of either pity or disappointment.

The young blond also told the boys that sirens had kept him awake all night. Jack didn't blame him. Those same sirens kept him up too and woke Crutchie up from a nightmare. He still wouldn't tell Jack what it was about but he woken up crying, which was very rare. Mostly when Crutchie woke up from a nightmare, he'd tell Jack about it and immediately go back to sleep, but last night the boy was shaken. He couldn't fall back asleep for anything.

Finally, the door swung open, startling some of the boys awake and breaking the others out of their own thoughts and daydreams. To everyone's surprise, two cops walked in the room. Almost every boy in the room ducked their head down, including Jack. But when the next words were spoken, everyone's heart stopped for a second.

"Anthony Higgins?" One of them called.

Crutchie looked up to Race to find his fearless, cocky, witty best friend with a look on his face that the younger boy never thought he'd see from him. Racetrack was surprised but more than that, he looked scared.

"He's right over there." Weasel pointed right to Racetrack and every boy in the room jumped to their feet as the cops advanced on their friend.

Crutchie limped over to stand next to Race who had jumped up and started backing away. Jack blocked his friend from their view. "What is this Weasel?" He demanded, not taking his eyes off the two policemen in the room.

"New day, new policy." Weasel answered easily, leaning his chair back and putting his hands behind his head, sitting back to watch the show. "You're friend Racer over there," he said pointing to the kid that everybody had jumped up to protect. "Has been late to school seventeen times this semester. New policy says that every ten tardies, equals two weeks in the Refuge."

Davey stood to the side of the room, watching every boys' face turn ghostly white at the mention of the Refuge. Crutchie grabbed Race's arm and Albert did the same on the other side of him. He didn't know what dangers this place really held but if he took all the boys' reactions as a sign, he'd say it was worse than bad.

Jack sighed, desperately trying to keep his cool at the thought of one of his brothers being dragged away to the Refuge. The place he still had nightmares about. The place he swore he would never let his boys be taken to even though most of them had already experienced the place, Race being one of them. Race being one of them to have the hardest times there along with himself.

"Jack..." Racetracks voice shook and Jack was certain he'd never heard the kid sound so terrified in his life. He glanced back and saw his boys surrounding Race, ready to protect him with their lives. He almost smiled as he saw his little brother stand tall even with his crutch, defiantly defending their friend.

"You ain't takin' no one ta that place," Jack spoke defiantly, taking one stride backwards, directly in front of both Crutchie and Racetrack. "'Specially not one of my boys." He said before knocking the desks over, throwing the cops off their feet. "Get outta here boys!" He cried, throwing chairs in the direction of the men trying to take away his brother.

Race was the first to be shoved out the window. The rest of them followed, even Davey. Jack had grabbed Crutchie, throwing his crutch over to Sniper, lifting his brother onto his back and running after his brothers. Specs waited till everyone was out before slamming the window down, tightly, laughing as the cops tried to open it and then ran.

"I can't believe we just left like that."

"What did ya want me ta do Dave? Let 'em take Racer ta that Prison? I can't sit back and let that happen! Last time he was there, he came back and didn't talk ta no one for weeks! He went mute! Crutchie was up all night cryin' because he was waiting for Race ta show up at our window! I can't do it all again! Not ta mention that I know what goes on in there and it's worse than hell." Jack didn't know he could get so worked up.

They sat in Jack and Crutchie's apartment. Sure it was small but it was also empty. Definitely enough room for twenty boys who had no where else to go.

Davey and Jack stood by the window away from everyone else, quietly arguing about what had just happened. All the others sat around asking everyone if they were ok. Crutchie kept very close to Racetrack. The younger boy wrapped his arm around the other as he sat silently. All of them were afraid he may go mute again. It was awful.

"Trust me if we woulda stayed there, it wouldn't of ended pretty anyhow." Jack added, looking at his boys with concern as they were unusually quiet.

"Well what are we supposed to do now?" Davey asked. "We can't just keep missing out on school, they'll find us eventually."

"I don't know Dave. Just let em calm down for now. We'll figure out what ta do later." Jack decided, making his way back over to all of the other boys.

They sat there all day. Race still hadn't said a word which worried Jack. Crutchie had tried talking to him but he still would only give short nods or a shake of the head. He didn't even crack a smile, all the memories of that awful place filling his mind.

Later that day, Davey had brought Les over to meet the guys, not wanting to just bail and go home. He'd genuinely taken a liking to these guys and wanted to see what was happening. And Specs had decided to go out and get Romeo.

"Hey kid," Crutchie greeted the young boy. "The names Crutchie." He extended a hand out for the kid who took it immediately.

"I'm Les!" The boy smiled. "I'm ten!" He added before smiling, bashfully. "Almost..." he sighed. Crutchie laughed.

Crutchie looked back to his friend Race. The older boy had never had the heart to stay upset around kids. Crutchie knew that and tried to use it against him. "This here's Race." Crutchie introduced. "He's a real tough guy." He added, punching Race in the arm, relief flooding over him when the older boy gave him a small smile.

"Hi Race!" Les yelled, making all the boys' faces light up at the innocences and positivity that came with him.

Crutchie sighed as Race still wouldn't speak. He watched one of his oldest friends look at the ground, deep in thought and from the looks of it, the thoughts were good ones. He sighed and looked back up to the boy who had been able to make him smile and saw something sticking out of the boy's backpack. It looked to be a brand new deck of cards. The gimp pointed in its general direction, "Ya like cards kid?" He asked.

Les nodded, his smile widening. "I play cards with my friends all the time. But Davey won't let me play for money." He sighed and rolled his eyes.

Crutchie chuckled and placed his hand on Race's back. "Ya know that Racetrack here is the best card player you's will eva' meet?" Race glanced over at him, but his smile never returned to his face.

"Well I betcha I could beat ya, Race!" Les exclaimed, confidently. By now, every boy in the rooms eyes widened. No one ever challenged Race with cards. Ever.

Race's eyes widened and turned his whole body to the kid who'd just challenged him. He crack a smiled and spit in his hand, extending it to the boy. "Your on kid!" He laughed when the boy mimicked his spit shake. The tension in the room visibly lessened when the boy spoke and the others laughed right along with him.

"Hey Jack!" Les ran up to the boy he'd just met yesterday. "Are ya thinkin' bout somethin'?" He asked when he saw the oldest boy's chin resting on his hand and his eyes unfocused and staring at the back wall. Just before he could answer, Race cut in.

"Sure he is, can't ya smell smoke?" He laughed and some of the others did too.

"Haha," Jack mocked, smaking Race in the head but smiling, glad he hadn't lost his friend a second time. "Look, we've gotta figure this out." He addressed and immediately all attention was on him. "We gotta stand together. Otherwise we don't stand a chance." He stated.

"Were just some lousy kids." He stood, his voice becoming more passionate with every word. "That's what they think. They don't care about us. Are we gonna let them do whatever they want ta us?" A chorus of "No!" Echoed in the small apartment. "If they think they can just get rid of us when we make a mistake, why do we go ta that damn school? We gotta fight back!" The boys all seemed to like this idea.

"How do we do that, Jack?" Specs asked and the boys all nodded, wanting the answer to the very same question.

"Well," Jack started. "If we don't show up for school, the teachers don't get paid. A school ain't any school without any students now is it?"

"What do ya mean, like a strike?" Every boys' eyes turned to meet Davey.

"Well you heard Davey! We're goin' on strike!" Jack exclaimed and the boys yelled in excitement.

"Whoa whoa whoa hey! I was just kidding!" He tried. "You can't go on strike! You're not a union." He explained.

"What if I says we is?" Jack asked.

"You need a lot of things to be a union." David may have looked calm on the outside but on the inside he was nervous. After one day of knowing the famous Jack Kelly, he already knew, when Jack was protecting his boys, he'd stop at nothing to get there.

"Yeah?" Jack scoffed. "Like what?"

"Membership." The tall boy stated, plainly.

Jack looked behind him at all the kids, looking back at his friend like his next sentence was completely obvious. "Whaddya call these guys." The boys all waved at him with smiles on their faces.

Davey struggled to find more to say. "And officers." He finally came out with.

"I nominate Jack president!" Crutchie said, a huge grin on his face.

"What about a statement of purpose?" The hesitant boy tried again.

"Oh I musta left that in my other pants." Jack replied, sarcastically.

"What's a statement of purpose?" Race asked in a slightly embarrassed voice.

"It's a reason for going on strike." These poor boys, Davey thought. No one thought they were worth teaching anything, did they?

"Did ya see that display back there?" Albert asked.

"They don't give a damn about us!" Finch added angrily.

Davey sighed, looking down at the floor. There was no talking them out of this was there? "Ok well, we at least gotta vote."

Jack turned to his brothers. Some of them looked nervous, scared even, but the oldest of them didn't think he'd ever seen so much determination coming from them, ever. "Whaddya say boys?" He asked after a quick moment of silence. "The choice is yours. Do ya wanna roll over and take whatever Pulitzer throws at us or do ya wanna strike?!"

The resounding call of "Strike!" Made even Davey smile. These kids were tough. They were ready to take on anything. But first would come the World.

"You heard the 'membership'!" Jack said as he walked over to Davey, clasping the boy's shoulder. "We're on strike!" He yelled.

"Shouldn't someone in charge know about it?" Crutchie asked nervously. He looked up at Jack to see if he was right.

"Ya..." Jack agreed. "Who tells Pulitzer?" He asked, lowering his voice as he asked Davey.

"I don't know..." Dave answered, still hesitant of the whole situation. But when Jack lifted his eyebrow in disbelief he groaned. "I guess you do Mister President."

"Alright!" Jack cheered with his boys. He then turned back to the brains behind the operation. "So uh, what do we tell 'im?"

Davey had had enough at this point. He ignored Jack's sly smile as he spoke up, himself. "They have to respect your rights too!" He proclaimed. The boys all shouted their agreements back at him. "That they can't just change the rules whenever they want!"

"That's right!" Jack agreed, slinging his arm around David's shoulder. "We do their work, we get them paid! So we get a say!"

Davey looked at Jack and saw the determination in his eyes. It was absolutely contagious. Every boy in this room had it radiating off of them like the light from the sun. "We got a union!" He proclaimed, excitedly.

"That's right!" Jack smiled. "The kids of Manhattan are saying no! They try to walk all over us, we'll stomp 'em to the ground! The World's gonna know who they messed with! Just cause Pulitzer owns the World, don't mean he owns us! No more!" And the boys all screamed in agreement.

 **This was probably my favorite part of this story to write. I love newsies so much! And, if you hadn't already noticed by me adding him to the plot so much, Race is my favorite. I love messing with his character and background and sometimes I just feel mean but I love him. And, damn, Ben Tyler Cook is my idol.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please make sure to tell me what you think by leaving a review. Tell me what you like, what you would change, if you have any ideas for future stories in the same kind of universe.**

 **Love ya babes!**


	9. Chapter 9

The boys all sat around Jacobi's, lazily laying over tables and chairs, glad the diner wasn't open yet. On Fridays it didn't open until four. Jacobi, the owner, rounded the tables handing out water to each boy. When he'd hired Jack he hadn't know about the entourage that was with him practically all the time. But it got him customers he guess, and he did take a liking to them.

"A water for you," he handed one to Sceps, "a water for you," to Race "a water for you," to Romeo. This continued for a while before he stood in front of the group. "Good luck boys." He waved before leaving into the backroom.

"So what's next Davey?" Jack asked from his seat in between Crutchie and Racetrack. His arm was slung over his little brothers' shoulder and he was the only one who noticed the fact that they both sat as close to him as possible.

"Well we gotta spread the word." Davey supplied. "The World has a school in every borough right?" The boys nodded. "We gotta get them involved."

"Alright," Jack sighed. "Ya heard Davey. Let's get out there!" He encouraged, knowing this would mean his boys would be walking to the other cities, and he probably wouldn't see them till the next morning.

"I'll take Harlem!" Mush yelled from across the room.

"I got Midtown." Race supplied, slightly raising up his hand. Jack patted him on the back before looking for more volunteers.

"I'll go to the Bronx!" JoJo spoke up.

"I got the Bowery!" Buttons jumped up raising his hand.

"Alright," Jack spoke, now that no more of his boys were willing to volunteer. "Specs!" He pointed to the boy, "you take Queens." The boy nodded and stood. "Sniper! You got the East Side." He smiled and stood with Specs. "And uh, what about Brooklyn?" He asked. Every boy in the room ducked their heads down, avoiding Jack's glare.

Davey didn't know why but when he saw the others reaction to the Brooklyn turf, he immediately became nervous. "Cmon." Jack scoffed. "Brooklyn." He said again. "Spot Conlon's turf." He looked around for one of his brothers who had yet to speak up. "Hey Finch!" He called and the boy looked up at him. "You tellin' me you're scared of Brooklyn?"

The boy practically flew out of his seat in defense. "Ey! I ain't scared of no turf!" He yelled, straightening his jacket to look intimidating. But then he added, "just... Spot Conlon... he makes me a little jittery." He cleared his throat at the end of his sentence and sat back down in his seat, almost looking defeated.

"Fine," Jack sighed. "Me and Davey'll take Brooklyn." He decided, pointing at Davey who stood at the counter on the other side of the room.

"Me?" He asked in surprise. If these tough as hell boys were scared of Brooklyn, he didn't stand a chance.

"Yeah." Jack nodded, shrugging off the other boy's worry.

"No! I-"

"Why is everyone so scared of Brooklyn?" A feminine voice broke out through the diner and all eyes turned to the front door to see a beautiful woman standing, waiting for an answer. Jack slid his way out of the seat he was in and walked his way up to the girl.

"What are you doin' here?" He asked, once he was face to face with her.

"Asking a question." She answered, obviously. "Have you got an answer?" She asked shyly as she now realized the entire focus of the room was on her.

Jack let out a soft laugh. It wasn't exactly rocket science but he supposed it might be ok rich folks like her. "Brooklyn is the sixth largest city in the world." He explained, his hands in his pocket and his posture showing his coolness in the situation. "You got Brooklyn on your side you're unstoppable." He narrowed his eyes after he said this, a thought popping into his mind. "Say, for someone who goes to The Sun," he said, using the nickname for the school, "you spend an awful lot of your time at The World." He accused, stepping forward. "What's that about huh?" He then backed up, a smile breaking out across his features as he jokingly hid behind his boys. "You followin' me?" The others laughed.

"The only thing I'm following," she corrected, pointing her finger in the air. "Is a story. A ragtag gang of ragamuffins taking on the Kings of New York. Do you really think you have a chance?" She asked.

"Shouldn't you be at the ballet?" Jack teased sarcastically, not taking too kindly to the insult of not only himself, but his boys as well. They mattered. The world just didn't know it yet.

"Oh was the question too difficult?" The girl teased right back. Jack felt his competitiveness turn up a notch at this. He was really starting to like this girl more and more. "Let me rephrase. Will the richest and most powerful men in New York give the time of day to a gang of kids who don't have a nickel to their name?" She asked. Then she watched as the boy with the crutch, the one that Jack had his arm around earlier, stood and limped up to her.

"'Ey you don't gotta be insultin'!" He protested. Then he huffed in a breath of air, looking as intimidating as he could with his boyish, adorable features. "I got a nickel." The girl smiled at him and a phrase popped into her head.

"I guess you'd say, you're a couple of Davids going to take on Goliath!" She said proudly, making her way over to the tall boy in the corner.

"We never said that." He countered, crossing his arms.

"Well you didn't have to," she told him, matter-of-factly. "I did."

"Ya know," Jack started again, "last time I checked, they didn't just let interns write hard news." He informed.

"Well, if I write it well..." she said. "They might just put it in the paper. Cmon," she begged, "how about an exclusive interview?"

"Aren't you on entertainment?" Jack asked.

"Oh this is entertaining." She laughed. She tilted her head. "So far." She added, anxiously.

"What was the last news story you wrote?" Jack stepped up to the woman, in her face now. To his surprise, she just stepped closer to him, not intimidated at all.

"What was the last strike you organized?" She shot back. Next thing she knew, a small twelve year old boy was at her side.

"Whoa you're out of your beat, Kelly!" Romeo laughed. "Methinks the lady needs to be handled by a real man." He said slyly.

The girl looked down at him, a confused and shocked look on her face. "You thinks wrong, Romeo."

The boy slid around her so instead he stood by Jack. He hit his hand against the older boy's arm. "How'd she know my name?" The boy asked, a big grin on his face. Jack couldn't help but smile too as he pushed the kid back into Racetrack, playfully. The blond boy easily caught his brother and laughed.

"I say we save the exclusive for a real reporter." Davey decided, his arms still crossed over his chest.

"Well, do you see anyone else giving you the time of day?" The girl scoffed. Realizing how rude that sounded, she closed her eyes and took a breath. "Ok so I'm just a kid who's trying to break into the reporting business, but if you give me the exclusive and let me run with the story I can get you the space!" She pleaded. It wasn't just a fight for these boys, she was fighting for her future too. She hoped the boys didn't see her anxiety increase when a moment of silence passed. But then the boy with the crutch spoke up.

"You really think we could be in the news?" He asked, shyly.

She smiled at him. "Shut down a school like The World?" She looked around at all the boys' nervous faces. "You'll be the main story."

Every kids' face lit up with excitement. She couldn't help but feel the passion in the room and take it in herself.

"You want a story?" Jack asked. "Be at the front of the school tomorrow mornin'." He said. Then he added, excited, "oh and bring a camera. Cause you'll wanna snap a picta' of this!" The boys all chorused their agreements, their fists laying up in the air.

"Alright everybody outta here!" Jacobi yelled, entering the room once more. "We've got payin' costumers comin in." He said, shooing them all out.

"Cmon," Finch said, slinging an arm over Race's shoulder. "We've got otha' boys ta visit." He proclaimed.

"Yeah!" Race agreed. "Ya won't be shooin' us out when our mugs are in the news!" He yelled to Jacobi. And the boys were off.

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change or what you would improve by leaving a review! As always, I love ya! Thanks you and goodbye! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

"Cmon Les!" Davey called to his little brother who was walking out of Jacobi's still talking to Jack who was about to go back inside, to work. "The folks are waitin'." The ten year old ran up to his big brother and grabbed his hand and they ran off together.

"So," the girl turned to Jack as they were the last two left in the front of the diner. "What's your story? Are you working here to gain money for art school?" She asked, curiously, picturing the portrait he'd done of her just two days ago.

Jack bit back a laugh. "Art school?" He scoffed, like there was no way in hell he could ever make it there. The girl's eyes widened at his response.

"But you're an artist!" She told him, obviously. "You have real talent! You should be out there, illustrating!" She insisted. "Instead of stuck at a school that doesn't teach you anything!"

"Maybe that's not what I want." Jack argued, softly. His hands shoved in his pockets as he looked at the ground, almost looking like he was in deep thought.

"Well what do you want?" The woman asked, readying a pencil and paper.

Jack put on his mysterious face and stepped closer to the girl, their faces almost touching. "Can't you see it, in my eyes?" He asked, his voice soft and low.

The girl's eyes widened and she took a step back. "Yeah ok..." she mumbled, her voice letting him know that move didn't work on her. "So have you always been their leader?" She asked trying to, desperately, change the topic.

Jack scoffed once again. "I'm just the blowhard, Davey's the brains." He said, pointing in the direction that his friend had gone.

"Modesty is not a quality I would've pinned on you." The girl wrote something down on her pad of paper.

"You got a name?" Jack finally asked, wondering just who this girl was.

"Katherine... Plumber." She answered, almost tripping over her last word. She quickly looked back down at the paper, like she was trying to hide something.

"What's the matter, ain't ya sure?" Jack laughed.

"It's my byline." She explained, looking up at him with a shrug. "The name I publish under." She then looked back at the paper in her hand. "What are you hoping for tomorrow?"

Jack stepped closer, closing in on Katherine once again. "I'd rather tell ya what I'm hoping for tonight." He responded, seductively.

"Mister Kelly..." she sighed, taking another step backwards.

Jack groaned and started talking. "Today we got most of the guys ta up and leave the school. Tomorra," he said with a cocky grin, "we get the rest of the school ta see the damn thing as it is. It's a trap. A prison. It needs ta be stopped." He explained.

"Are you scared?" Katherine asked. Hell, she wouldn't blame him. Even she was nervous.

"Do I look scared?" He scoffed. But then he looked at the ground and bit his lip, nervously. "But uh... ask me again in the mornin'." He added.

Katherine's jaw dropped. She's gotta say, she wasn't expecting the great Jack Kelly to admit he may actually have feelings. "Good answer!" She then looked at the time on the clock that hung on the back wall of Jacobi's. "Goodnight Mister Kelly." She said as she turned and started to quickly walk away.

"'Ey!" He called after her. "Where ya runnin' to? It ain't suppertime yet!" He joked, not at all wanting this girl to leave. She smiled sweetly at him, making him melt inside.

"I'll see you in the morning, Mister Kelly." She waved as she turned to walk away. But she once again turned back to say, "and off the record... good luck." And then she hurried off. But she didn't get very far before the boy called her again.

"'Ey Plumber!" He looked as if he was about to make one of his sarcastic comments but he then lowered his gaze as he asked her something. "Write it good. We both got a lot ridin' on ya." And then he returned to the restaurant, leaving behind a practically speechless writer.

Write it good.

 **I am so glad that you guys who are reviewing love this story. It took me a lot of time to write it so I appreciate the feedback. I'm thinking about uploading the next two chapters today also. I'm excited to put up the whole series because, as I said before, it gets a lot more intense. If you want to hear a little bit about those just let me know.**

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change, or what you would improve by leaving a review! See ya later babes!**


	11. Chapter 11

"You heard the man." Katherine mumbled to herself in her bedroom as she stared at an empty computer screen. The blank page was almost taunting her. "Write it good." She tried her best to imitate his own voice. "Write it good or you'll lose this internship and never get the career you wanted in life!" Her anxiety rose up in her like fire. But she calmed herself down more or less. "No pressure." She added softly.

"Kids Stop The World..." She typed, stopping for a moment. Well a little hyperbole never hurt anyone, she thought to herself. "All eyes are fixated in on new releases and the internet, while an uproar starts in Manhattan." She typed up.

"Now if I could only write about it..." she muttered. She groaned as she tried her best to remember some good advice. "Cmon Katherine, those boys are counting on you!" She commanded herself. And then she thought about that statement in horror. "Oh you poor boys."

Write what you know, they said. It'll all come if you just write the facts. All she knew is that she had no clue what to write or how to write it. This was huge. It could be a career changer. If she screwed this up she would never forgive herself. She will have let down those poor boys and screwed up her own future. This isn't some stupid little review for a show. This was about kids that were standing up to the greediest men in New York. It's a cinch! Maybe it could just write itself.

"Let's pray it does," Katherine whispered as she thought about that. Truth was she really didn't know what she was doing. She decided she must be insane. This story was what she'd been waiting for. Then, of course, there was an even bigger story behind the story. Thousands of children, exploited, invisible, were finding their voices and standing up for a good cause. And she'd be damned if she wasn't gonna write about it. That is, after all, how things improve.

All these guys need is some flowing words to make them come alive right in front of people all over the world. They'd be the center of everyone's attention. She'd smile as she got to sit back and watch what happened when the boys would finally be worth something in the public's eyes. She was reporting small boys becoming men. She may have squealed a little when she realized this story was definitely going to land her a job.

She sat back at her desk and began to type some more. "A modern day David is poised to take on the rich and powerful Goliath with the swagger of one twice his age, armed with nothing but a few nuggets of truth, Jack Kelly stands ready to take on the behemoth, Pulitzer." She smiled and leaned back in her chair, admiring her work.

"Now that is how you turn a boy into a legend." She mumbled to herself, grinning.

Oh Jack Kelly. Handsome, heroic, charismatic. Then she groaned as the other part of him came to mind. Plain spoken, know nothing, skirt chasing, cocky little son of a-

Nope. She wasn't going to be thinking negatively right now. Not tonight. After all, this kid could get her a job. So he's a flirt. A complete ego maniac. The fact was, he's also the face of the strike, what a face- What? No! Katherine stopped herself. That's a face that would just save them from sinking too deep into loss. But then again, power tends to corrupt and absolute power-

Corrupts! That's genius! Katherine thought, typing away at her laptop. Keep this up and she'd become twice as good as that... never... she groaned at her own self doubt and continued her train of thought instead.

This story could be the start of a new world. The people here before them made the mistake of growing up and getting old. But Katherine vowed to never let that happen. They'll stay young forever. They'll stay young and David will fight Goliath. She didn't know if she could even watch. But hey, nothing happens if they give up. Nothing could really get any worse. And it just so happens that they just might win.

So whatever did happen... "Let's do this." She whispered and got to work.

 **I love Katherine. In my personal opinion, this might be the hardest song to sing through out the entire show. I should know. I've performed it before and wow it was hard. But it's fun.**

 **In other news, if any of you get bored and decide you need something to get you up on your feet and start dancing, I've been listening to the new Broadway Musical Bandstand :0, I love it. Corey Cott is no Jeremy Jordan (who, in my book will always be Jack Kelly) but he's definitely a Donny Novitski. Love it! (By the way, in my writings I typically use the cast from the recorded version of the musical, if anyone cares. They're just fantastic). Anyways...**

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change and what you'd improve by leaving a review! Love ya kids! ;)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Here it is kids. The moment that makes everyone tear up a bit for so many different reasons. I hope you enjoy!**

The boys all stood outside of the school, looking left and right, hoping to see a group of boys coming to their aid. But it didn't look to be the case. "Is anyone else comin'?" Davey asked, still looking around to see any new faces. They all sat on or stood beside the wall right outside of the metal fence that surrounded the school.

"I got no clue." Jack sighed, glancing around again.

"You seen Spot Conlon right?" Race asked from his place in front of Jack and Crutchie who sat on the wall, Romeo was by his side as well. The boys had decided not to send Les or Romeo to school in case the same thing was gonna happen there.

"Yeah we seen 'im." Jack assured, looking down at his hands.

"And about 20 of his gang." Davey added. Then Les spoke up from beside his big brother.

"And those Brooklyn boys are big!" He said, his eyes wide at remembering those intimidating kids.

Jack then looked back up at his boys. "And I gotta say, Spot was pretty impressed, wasn't he?" Davey nodded.

"I'd say." He agreed. But then Jack made the mistake of looking up into Racetrack's eyes as he spoke. His blue orbs were so full of hope and Jack didn't think he could handle this any longer.

"So he's with us?" Race asked. He knew Spot well. They used to be friends before the other boy became the king of Brooklyn. But that didn't mean anything. If Spot didn't think they'd win, he wasn't coming.

"That all depends on how you look at it." David responded in an even tone. "If you look and see Brooklyn, then they're with us."

Jack looked over at Crutchie and saw the disappointment in his eyes. He put a hand on the boy's shoulder and explained. "They want proof we're not gonna fold out at the first sign of trouble."

"Are we?" Finch stepped up next to Race so they were shoulder to shoulder. Jack knew that his boys were nervous, but they had to do this. It was only a matter of time before this damn school would kill them and bury them, leaving the world with one less living soul without anyone noticing.

"Of course not!" He shouted. "We've got us and Harlem-"

"Not so fast, boss." Mush spoke from Race's right. "Harlem wants to know what Brooklyn's gonna do." His voice was full of sorrow as he said this. Hope was fading in the group and it was fading fast.

"What about Queens?" Jack asked.

"Queens'll be right behind us!" Specs said, enthusiastically before adding, defeated, "right after they get the nod from Brooklyn."

"I got the same crap over in Midtown." Race spat. Jack and Crutchie were the only two that could clearly see the fear in his eyes.

Of course, right at that moment, Oscar and Morris had to walk by. "Hey look at this," the younger of the two spoke. "Looks like these kids are scared to go into their own school." He teased. "Now I don't care either way," he continued, and Jack stood, ready to defend whoever the boy was going to attack now. "If ya stay out here and stop kids from goin' ta school, the cop'll come and soak ya real good. And if ya go inside, I'll be rid of a 'specially lousy little gambler for the next two weeks!" He lunged at Race and Finch lunged right back at him at the account of Mush holding back a very angry Racetrack. Jack stepped in front of Finch and put a hand on the boy's chest. He glared at the bullies as they walked away.

Les walked up to Jack and stared off in the two baseball players direction. "Are we doing the right thing?" He asked nervously.

"Sure we are!" Davey insisted, running to his kid brother's side.

"Look," Race started, nervously, shoving his hands in his pocket. "Maybe we should just call this off." He thought about what Oscar had said. They'd surely have to fight off the cops if they refused to enter the building and if they did go inside, it would only be him. Jack maybe the leader, but he was practically second in command. He protected his boys. He then looked over at Crutchie. He wasn't about to put this kid in danger. "Without reinforcements we don't stand a chance."

Davey stood and walked up to the gambler. "No we cannot just put this off!" But he could see it in the younger teen's eyes. He didn't believe him. So Davey resorted to persuading Jack. "Say something! Tell them if we back off now they will never listen to us again!" He said, knowing it was the truth. These people barely heard their cries now.

Jack nodded and stood on the wall beside Crutchie and spoke to his boys. "Hey we can't back down now!" He looked around at his boys. If they backed down now, Race would be taken to the Refuge. His second in command would be gone. The whole two weeks crap was bull, The Spider would find away to keep him longer. When Race had been taken the first time it was a mess.

Crutchie wouldn't sleep or eat, he'd only beg Jack to take him to see Race. Romeo cried for hours every morning, missing the boy he called an older brother and just wanting him to drop him off at school again. Albert was a wreck and the Delancies picked on him and Crutchie more and more because of the absence of their other target. Jack felt guilty because he hadn't been able to stop it. On top of that, Race had been sentenced to a week and ended up staying five.

And what happened after, huh? Next they'd take Albert, then Elmer, then Finch then... then Crutchie. Jack wouldn't... couldn't let this happen. "No matter who does or doesn't show up, like it or not, now is the time to take a stand." He tried. But his boys... there was so much doubt in their eyes. "Davey tell them!" He pleaded.

The taller boy stuttered at a loss for words. He had no idea how to talk to these kids. He barely knew them. But he looked at the desperation on Jack's face and started making his way through the crowd, starting with Racetrack. He placed his hand on the boy's shoulder and forced the younger kid to look at him. "Now is the time to seize the day." He spoke, the words flowing out of his mouth without his consent. He didn't even know where they came from but he continued. "We need to stare down the odds. They can't beat us!" Race nodded and shifted his gaze back to the floor, but he caught the fire igniting in the boy's eyes and continued on to Finch. "Every minutes we'll take a risk. That's the only way we'll win!" He nodded to the boy who smiled up at him and then continued to Mush. "We'll find a way. So let's do this."

"Hey Jack," Crutchie spoke softly. Jack jumped down and stood in front of his brother. "Look what I made." He reached into his back and pulled out a banner that had the word "Strike" painted on it and he attached it to his metal Crutchie that had been laying on the ground in front of him. He then stood on his good leg and held up the banner. "Strike!" He yelled, trying to be as intimidating as he could be. Jack smiled widely at his brother's enthusiasm.

"That's great!" Race yelled, patting the boy he also thought of as a little brother on the back. He then turned to Davey and Les and whispered. "That's pitiful." But Les jumped in.

"Hey don't be so quick to judge!" He defended. "Maybe Pulitzer will see it from his office and feel bad for us." He smiled. Crutchie laughed sarcastically at Race's comment but smiled as Race wrapped him in a one armed hug and ruffled his hair.

"Hey Finch!" Jack yelled up to the boy who had taken his place on the wall. "Any sign of reinforcements?" The boy shook his head and gave them a thumbs down.

Davey saw the boys all become disappointed once again and he continued making his way through the crowd. "Cmon boys!" He walked over to Crutchie and Race. "We have ta have courage. That doesn't mean not being afraid! It means we get to face our fears together!" He grabbed the fabric on the blond boy's crutch and smiled as he held it lightly in his hand. Crutchie smiled up at him and laughed as Race shook him a bit with the arm that was still wrapped around his shoulders. "Those people have power and they have a safe place to stay all the time. But they need to know that just because they think they're untouchable doesn't mean we'll obey!"

The fire inside each one of them held the same power as the sun. They were beginning to believe they mattered and that they could do something about it.

"There may not be many of us!" Jack shouted, stepping up next to Davey and slinging an arm over his shoulders. "But we are too proud to hide from them!" He spoke to all of his boys practically individually. "The others that were too scared to join us today? It doesn't matter!" He said. "We're fighting for them because they are just as much a brother to us as we are to each other!"

At this point all the boys stood tall, arms around each other, ready to head into a war as long as they had each other by their side. "Once we start, if we stand together they won't be able to break us!"

The boys all shouted their defiant agreements. "Let em hear this loud and clear! We're not backing down now! We're gonna take down the giants of New York and make them see us for what we are! We're starting something that they can't ignore no more!"

A resounding "Yeah!" Echoed through the air as the boys lit up with hope. They stood their ground in front of the school's entrance, not allowing any other kids past them. After a minute of kids just immediately joining them, knowing that they weren't gonna be pushed around any longer, three boys stepped up, trying to get past the brothers.

"Cmon let us through!" One of them shouted.

"No! Ey! cmon!" Jack yelled as they tried to get past. "I know what these people musta done ta get ya to go in there. Well it ain't right!" He said, walking up to one of them and stopping inches away, making sure that he couldn't get past. The other two stood behind him, waiting to see what he was gonna do. "Pulitzer!" He said pointing to the school. "He thinks we're a buncha damn gutter rats with no respect for nothin', includin' each other!" He pointed at the boy's chest. "Is that what we are?" He asked in a quieter voice, but making sure the scabs could still hear him. "Well if we stab each other in the back then, yeah, that's who we are." He shrugged. "But if we stand together we can change the whole game. This ain't just about us! All over the place there are boys and girls who should have a safe place to go at night, warm and snug in their beds." He felt everything in him break at his own words. He just wanted that for his brothers and anyone else who needed it. "Instead, they're out there shiverin' on the streets of hidin' from adults who wanna hurt them for their own gain.'

"Ain't no problem in bein' poor." He continued, looking over the boy's shoulder at his friends, trying to see if he made a dent. "Not one of us complains about not havin' a good place ta sleep or a sweatshirt ta wear when we are shiverin' and huddling together ta get warm. All we ask for is a square deal from this place." He pointed to the ground as he made his point.

"Fellas," his voice was pleading as he spoke and it was small but strong. "For the sake of all the kids on the street and every child with bruises or burns on 'em for somethin' they didn't do, I beg you throw down your bags and join the strike." Jack held out his hand, ready to shake the hand of every scab that joined them.

Katherine stood off to the side, knowing none of the boys had really seen her at all. At Jack's speech she felt a fire inside her ignite and she suddenly wanted nothing more than fight for every kid who needed help. Sure, these boys were kids, but they'd been through so much more than anyone of these grown ups had ever experienced in their lifetime.

"Please?" Les spoke out among the rest of the group, pleading with them to join in their fight.

The scab took one step closer to Jack, making the rest of the boys step forward, ready to take him down if he laid a hand on their older brother and their leader, but Jack waved them off. The boy did the unexpected. He took his bag off his back and dropped it to the ground. "I'm with ya!" He yelled, walking past Jack and into the group.

One of the other scabs tried to walk through the group but was stopped by Davey. "Now is the time to take a stand! Cmon! Stand up for something that's right! Every wrong we've made will be right if we stand together! We can do this!" He encouraged. The boy paused for a moment, looking down at his hands. Finally, he slowly took off his bag and dropped it to the ground.

"Are you kidding me?" The last one yelled, starting to become nervous.

"At the end of the day, who are you gonna trust?" The boy said as he joined the group. "Them?" We pointed to the band of brothers. "Or them?" He pointed to the school and spat out the word as if it were poison.

The last boy tried to quickly pass by Jack but the boy stopped him with a hand to his chest, Race and Albert right behind him. "Cmon kid, let 'em know that they don't own you!" The boy looked over at his friend's who had immediately become apart of the group. Arms were wrapped around their shoulders and they had brothers to look out for them. He sighed.

"My father's gonna kill me anyways." He threw down his bag and shook Jack's hand. Every boy cheered with excitement. They were making a difference.

Katherine chose that beautiful moment to step out of her hiding place and whip out her camera. "Smile!" She yelled and all the boys stopped immediately and looked over at the camera, smiling widely.

For a while, they stood there, congratulating each other, smiling and getting ready for a fight. And that's exactly what they got. They all heard a whistle and they turned to find a whole bunch of scabbers in front of them and the school staff behind them, including the Delanceys.

"Boys, just get inside, accept the new policies and no ones gonna get hurt." Morris said, but they all knew he just wanted to fight them. Before they knew what hit them, the Delancey brothers had advanced and grabbed Les.

"Jack! Davey! Help!"

"Get 'em boys!" And that was when the battle began. Davey and Jack ran for Les, fighting off the Delancey's who immediately turned and went for Racetrack.

It was absolute madness. Jack saw his boys getting beat bad. Buttons was thrown to the ground, Henry was kicked in the stomach, Mush was punched in the face and everyone was closing in on them. They went for Crutchie who was wildly swinging his crutch at everyone who advanced on him and they went for Race who they were still trying to take away.

Then Weasel showed. He pointed at Racetrack as if showing his entourage who to go for. Race ran and all the boys made a wall in front of him. "These boys need to be taught a lesson." And the madness continued.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of a full on battle, the cops arrived. "It's about time you showed up!" Romeo cried. "They're slaughtering us!" He was rewarded with a sock in the eye. Race ran for him immediately and started fighting off the cops as best he could by himself after throwing his little brother behind him, before he was joined by Albert and Elmer.

Crutchie tried to get away as he saw his brothers all running from the cops. Davey had grabbed Les and gotten him out of there and Albert and Buttons dragged a soaked Race away from the bulls and Elmer rescued Henry from one of the soakers. Pretty soon, Crutchie didn't see anyone but the Delancey's who were closing in on him.

"Jack!" He cried for his brother, his guardian who always saved him. "Jack help!" Morris and Oscar just laughed at his pleas and soon they had stolen his crutch from him and he was on his back on the ground. "Jack! Race! Romeo!" He called for any of his friends but no one came running for him.

Jack had seen Snyder and bolted. He assumed that all of his boys had beat it anyways so he ran, but then he heard something that made his whole world stop. "Jack help!"

Jack turned and watched helplessly from a nearby alley that concealed him from his enemies. He breathed heavily as he watched the boy he loved like a kid brother get beat with his own crutch and then Snyder came. The man kept on beating the boy with his crutch and then pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

"It's off to the Refuge with you, little man!" And he secured the cuffs around Crutchie's wrists that were above his head as he now lay on his stomach and the pavement, trying to claw his way away from the people who were trying to hurt him. Then Oscar grabbed the boy by his bad leg and dragged him to the police car, shoving him inside.

"Crutchie!"

Jack straightened up, ready to chase after them and save his brother but right as he stepped out of the alley, he heard, "Kelly!" And he couldn't help but run as Snyder yelled some more. "Get him!" And Morris ran for him, so he ran too.

He ran knowing he'd broken every promise he'd ever made to his brother. He let him down.

 **Let me know if you guys want to hear a bit about the following stories. I'll tell you this much, they aren't complete yet. So I may be asking for suggestions, heads up.**

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change or what you would improve by leaving a review! Love you guys and I'm always happy to hear from you!**


	13. Chapter 13

He was sure his screams were heard throughout his building, but the people inside didn't care enough to come breaking down his door asking him to continue his break down quietly. He stomped on the ground, crying out in pain as he punched the walls and the counters. He'd failed today. Today was the day he would forever be labeled as "Jack Kelly; the boy who couldn't protect his brothers and got one of them locked up in the Refuge."

Jack practically collapsed as he sat down on the mattress in the room. This would make the headlines; school boys crushed as bulls attack. And those screams, the screams of his brother crying out for his help, oh they'd never leave his mind. The crip was just too damn slow. The images of Race's wide eyes as they lunged for him and Romeo, Albert rolling over in pain, Elmer holding his bleeding face in his hands, Buttons, Finch, Sniper, Mush, Henry all fighting off cops all because of him. Good old captain Jack. Well captain Jack had had enough. He just wanted to close his eyes and go!

Far, far away there was a place no one would find him. Not the bulls, not Weasel, not his disappointed brothers, not Pulitzer, no one! There was a place he would forget about it all. Tomorrow he'd forget all of it... but deep down he knew there was no forgetting his brothers, his family... his family that he let down today.

When the city's finally sleeping and there was nothing left but the big, grey moon, he would be on the train that's heading for Santa Fe. He be gone and done. He wouldn't need to lie his way out anymore! No more conning people into giving him food or money for him and his boys, no more running from people who were trying to hurt him. No more fat old men ordering him around, dictating his every move, telling him how to live his own damn life. All that would be left was a yellow moon that makes midnight feel like sunrise. It was somewhere where he could live. He could be who he wanted to be.

Jack swore it was written somewhere that "once you've lived here, you gotta die here." He just wanted a break. Why should he only take the crap that people give him? Work, work and more work all for what? For a crummy apartment? A few cheep sweaters? Maybe a few boxes of food? Why should he spend his whole life living somewhere that didn't want to give him a future. All people cared about was how he made them look. Nothing was about him or what he wanted. It was all about the people he "worked for." He was seventeen damn it. He wanted a say in his own damn life.

On top of all that he was breaking his back everyday for people that didn't deserve it. For Pulitzer and Weasel and the Delancey's. The only thing he would never regret are his boys. He'd die for them. But this life wasn't for him, so why should he be there? He wanted to get out. Go far, far away.

He was done dreaming. He'd been teased and bullied for being a dreamer but he didn't care. He wasn't getting any younger and he needed a new start, far from here. He needed to be done. The boys were better off without him running his big mouth. They needed someone who could protect them. But he couldn't. He couldn't protect Crutchie, or Race or any of them. He didn't care if he arrived at his dream land and everyone was laughing at him. He just wanted a place to call his own and he couldn't hurt anyone anymore.

All he wanted was for it all to become real. A place where he could start over. He didn't want it to just be a stupid picture he'd drawn. He wanted to see the horizon and be able to soak in the clean sunlight. He's dead if Santa Fe ain't waiting for him.

He's got nothing without his dreamland. His boys needed someone better. Someone who'd always be there for them. Someone to protect them. And Jack couldn't do it.

Jack had failed.

 **:'(. Poor Jack.**

 **Thank you guys so much for reviewing! I'm sorry for making you guys cry but I'm glad y'all like the story that much!**

 **As always, thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving a review! Thank you loves! I hope to hear from you guys about this chapter and ones you may be excited for in the future! I'll probably upload one or two more chapters today! Bye!**


	14. Chapter 14

"Drink up boys!" Jacobi demanded as he finished handing each one of the boys a glass of water. "And don't say I neva' did nothin' for ya." The Italian started to walk to the back of the empty diner, but stopped and spoke some more. "And before you say water is nothin', just ask a fish... in the desert." Then he left the boys, sulking in his restaurant in silence.

"Why do old people talk?" Albert sighed from his place, slumped over, practically laying on the table. He sat with other boys who were holding their bruised and possibly broken limbs, all of them were in some sort of pain.

"To prove they're still alive." Race answered, giving his brothers a much needed chuckle. He actually lay on his back atop the table opposite Albert. They all knew what had happened. They'd heard Crutchie crying out, but no one was brave enough to go and rescue him. And when Jack was no where to be found, they went to Jacobi's, hoping he'd show up sooner or later, but it didn't look good.

"Good morning gentlemen!" Katherine exclaimed, entering the diner, a smile plastered on her face. But she stopped when she saw the boys. They were covered in blood and bruises and some of them even tried to rapidly wipe away some tear streaks. Katherine knew these boys were tough and if they were scared, she knew it was bad. "Take a look at these glum mugs." She pouted, knowing how to be getting these boys to smile once more. "Why, can these really be the same boys that made the news today?" She opened up her laptop and set it down at Race's feet, leaving it open on a picture of a very familiar group of school boys.

"Hey look at that!" Race shouted after sitting up and glancing at the screen. "It's me!" He pointed to himself on the screen, a huge smile on his face.

"You ain't even dead!" JoJo pointed out, and Race smacked him in the head.

"Where's me?" Romeo asked, climbing up next to Race. "Where's me?"

"Wait till my old man gets a load of this!" Another one of them yelled, excited.

"You got us in the news?" David stood next to Katherine, genuinely impressed at her work. She just smiled at him and looked at each face in the room.

"You got yourselves in the news." She corrected. Then she looked down at her hands. "But Pulitzer put a block on all strike news. Even I'm cut off now." She said sadly. Then she turned to Davey and spoke in a quieter voice, the worry in her voice increasing significantly. "Hey, I heard they arrested Crutchie. Did they get Jack too?"

Albert chose that moment to step up behind Davey, hoping beyond everything that the rumors he heard weren't true and that Jack had done what he had to do. But he sighed, hiding his emotions in his straight tone. "The Delancey's are spreadin' rumors that Jackie boy took off at the first sign of the cops."

From a seat next to Race, Les popped up and ran to Jack's defense. "Jack don't run from no fight!" He yelled. Albert smiled at the innocent boy who still believed in the hero he'd just met. He didn't blame him, most of these kids looked up to Jack like he was a God or something, himself included. They'd run to him with anything because he always made it easier somehow. But not today. It wouldn't work today.

"Calm down, short stuff," Albert leaned down, ruffling the boy's hair. "That's just what I heard."

Race didn't even know what was going on around him anymore. All he knew was, his face was in the news. "For jumpin' Jack's sake, would you stow the seriousity long enough, to just drink! In the moment!" Race exclaimed, cigar in hand, punching Elmer in the arm. They all rolled their eyes. They were too young to drink but Race joked about it all the time. "I'm famous!" He finished.

"Yeah what of it?" Finch asked, annoyed, from his seat next to Race's table. The second in command still sat on the edge of the table, the computer in his lap, scrolling through their news story.

He pulled the unlit cigar out of his mouth and looked at Finch like he was insane. The cigar was not understood by all but a few of them knew why he carried it around all the time, and the rest of them just let it go.

"Ya stupid or what?" The others just shrugged, like having their pictures in the news was no big deal but Race continued on, in his thick, New York accent. "When you're famous, the world is your erster."

Every kid in the room, including Katherine, looked at him like he was crazy. "Your what?" Henry asked, confused.

"Your erster." Race repeated as if it was obvious, but he looked around the room and they were still confused. He groaned, remembering that he did have a heavy New York accent. "Your fancy clam with the pearl inside!"

The whole room erupted in understanding. "How much does bein' famous pay?" Henry asked and Race just scoffed.

"Ya don't need money when you're famous! They give ya whatever ya want! Gratis!" He explained, not understanding why Katherine was laughing or Davey was smiling at him weirdly.

"Such as?" Elmer asked, not quite understanding.

"You want a pair of new shoes that's got matchin' laces? You got it!" He said, smacking his hand down on the table to emphasize his claim.

"You think they'd give me pastrami on rye with a sour pickle?" Henry asked, dreaming about that sophisticated sandwich. The boy loved food. Sometimes Jacobi would let him help out in the kitchen.

Race laughed and nodded before Finch spoke, "I want my own face on a wooden nickel!" He exclaimed and the boys all chuckled.

"Look at us!" Race pointed at the picture on the screen. "Fellas, we're kings!" He stood on the table, his excitement getting to him as he suddenly forgot about everything that had been going wrong, and he started to dance on the table. He spun around and shouted, "I'm the king of New York!"

The boy jumped down and all his friends joined in on the dance, moving to whatever upbeat tune was playing in Jacobi's diner. "They gotta respect us now!" Race yelled. "It's our city now!"

The boys all shouted their agreements and danced along with Race. "But hey!" Davey interrupted. "This story's gotta be the one that gave the world a star reporter!" He said, gesturing to Katherine who was sitting and laughing while she watched the boys celebrate. She looked up at Davey, shocked before Race ran up to the taller boy and playfully pushed him out of the way.

"Am-scray punk!" He shouted, pretending he was a celebrity's personal body guard as he grabbed the girl's hand and pulled her up. "She's the king of New York!"

Katherine stood, staring at Race with a huge grin on her face. It was the first time since she'd met him that he was genuinely happy. And she'd been the one to make that happen. It was truly an honor. Next thing she knew, all the boys surrounded her, cheering her on and she rolled her eyes as she turned and saw a her empty chair next to the table she'd previously sat at. Race held out his hand and she took it, accepting his help. She stepped up to the chair and then to the table and turned around happily as she shouted. "Who woulda thought? I'm the king of New York!"

"She saved us!" Les exclaimed.

Looking down at Race she yelled. "So let's get drunk!" And all the boys yelled in excitement. "Not with liquor! Fame works quicker when you're the king of New York!"

"But what happens tomorrow?" Romeo asked. "They'll all forget about us." He looked up at his big brothers with sadness in his eyes but Race quickly hit the baseball cap that was on his head so it covered the boy's eyes.

"Stop thinkin' bout that kid!" He yelled, a grin still plastered on his face.

"Yeah, we were famous for a whole minute!" Albert agreed. He snuck up behind Romeo and grabbed him around the waist, spinning him up off the ground, making the little boy squeal in surprise.

Then they went back to dancing. Some of the boys were doing flips and others were chasing each other around in excitement. Then Davey stopped. He looked and realized that Katherine had sat down on the edge of the table, simply watching the madness going on around her. So the boy grabbed Race as he was chasing around Les and Romeo with a spoon, pretending to be sword fighting. Dave nodded towards the girl and Race grabbed a lot of the other boys' attention and they all surrounded their hero.

"Cmon Katherine!" Davey encouraged as all the boys clapped along to the beat of the music, waiting for her to get up and dance.

"Yeah Plumber!" Albert shouted. The boys joined in and shouted for her to celebrate with them.

Katherine shyly stood and walked into the center of the group and started tapping her foot. She spun around and threw up her arms as if she'd done an amazing trick.

"That's it?" Davey said, disappointed, and the others booed and started to walk away. Katherine saw their happiness fading. She wasn't ready for that yet. They needed a reason to celebrate. So she ran up right behind Race and danced. She tapped in front of all the boys, recalling the classes her mother had made her take all those years. Then she kicked her leg up and all the boys shouted in excitement and started dancing right along with her.

Race held her around the waist and grabbed her other hand and they jumped and danced around the room to the music. Out of no where, Albert pulled the blond boy away from Katherine and Les stepped in. He did a dance and then stopped, waiting for her to do the same. She did, easily. Then they did it again and all the boys saw Katherine's competitive side shine through. Now they all started to see what Jack saw in the girl. She was amazing.

"What are we still doing here boys?!" Katherine yelled as the song they'd been dancing to ended. "We're kings! Let's go win a war!"

"Yeah!" Everyone yelled.

"Cmon Davey." She said pulling him out of the room. "Let's go find Jack." He nodded, grabbing Les and nodded to all of the boys.

"I think I know where he might be."

 **Thank you so much to Teeloganroryflan and my guest reviewer for continuing to give me feedback! I very much appreciate it! I hope you guys liked this little lighthearted happy chapter, it's one of my favorites. I'll be back in a few hours to update!**

 **In response to my guest reviewer, who apparently reviewed a few days ago but I couldn't see it for some reason, thank you thank you thank you! It was my biggest fear that I wouldn't be staying true to the characters and I'm so happy you see that I am. It was something I worked very very hard on so thank you very much! If you ever feel like I've strayed from that, please let me know!**

 **As always, make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change or what you'd improve by leaving a review! Love ya babes!**


	15. Chapter 15

Crutchie sat on a top bunk, with a paper and pencil he managed to steal from Snyder's desk earlier. Two boys had helped him up to a bunk where no one would try to soak him for the room he was taking up. But they assured him that that was the only kindness he receive from them, or anyone in the place. As he sat up, every part of him screamed in pain. But the boy was determined.

"Dear Jack," he wrote, the pencil breaking the deafening silence of the room. "How are ya? I'm okay. Guess I wasn't a lot of help yesterday." He sighed as he paused in his writing. Yesterday... he remembered all of his brothers cries. Most of them went home with black eyes and sprained, possible broken, limbs. And then he remembered the pain that shot through his leg as he was dragged away. And then when Snyder had gotten him and started to unleash all of his anger on him. "Snyder soaked me real good with my crutch." He paused, something occurring to him, before he continued, "This is Crutchie by the way."

The blond boy laughed at his own mistake. It was something he'd learned from Race. Jack had learned it too from the boy that kept everyone calm. It was the reason every one of the boys called him second in command. He could always make anyone laugh in, what seemed like, a terrible situation.

Crutchie continued on, telling Jack about everything that had happened. "The guards here are rude." He wrote, remembering how he'd fallen on his face right in front of them and they'd yelled at him to get up and move along. "If they say jump, boy ya jump or you're screwed."

As Crutchie wrote, he tried desperately not to choke up. He tried not to think about the strike. Tried not to think about the boys being hurt. Instead he focused on his growling stomach. "The food ain't so bad, at least so far. Cause so far they ain't brought us no food." He smiled at his own joke. "Haha..." he added. Then he couldn't help but think about Jack and Race. He let a tear fall as he remembered every night that Race would show up at their window at midnight, trying not break down when he knew Crutchie was watching, quickly tossing out a joke. But when they thought Crutchie was asleep, Race would lose it because he'd had a nightmare about this place. He'd let Jack hold him and the older boy would cry right along with him. Then in the morning, they'd joke it off, claiming it was nothing.

"I miss the penthouse." He wrote. "Sleepin' in a cool room, right next ta you and even Race sometimes." He sighed, wiping away the tears that threatened to fall from his watery eyes.

"Anyways," he tried to think of something happy. Then he looked towards the window. "So guess what! There's a secret escape plan I got. I'll tie a sheet to the bed and throw the other end out of the window. Then I'll climb down and take off like a shot!"

Out of no where, a sharp pain shot up his good leg and up into his back. "Maybe though, not today. I ain't slept and my legs are still not right." He was ashamed of his own negativity. So he decided to be his typical, positive self. "Hey, but Pulitzer, he's going down! And then Jack I was thinkin' we might just go. To the place you was talkin' bout before. Where it's clean and green and pretty and you can see the hills and the water with no buildin's in your way. Once that train makes-"

One of the boys in the same bed as him harshly shushed him, finding the noise of the paper on pencil very annoying. "Damn this place." Crutchie mumbled to himself. "I'll be fine." He wrote, brushing off the harshness he'd already experienced in the place his brothers vowed he'd never go. "Good as new. But there's something I need ya ta do. In our penthouse you said family looks out for each other." He remembered, smiling as he remembered every time Albert or Race or Elmer would force him on their backs because they could tell he wasn't walking too good. They looked out for him. "Tell all the fellas for me, to protect one another." He asked. He smiled as he thought about the boys, winning because they stood together.

"The end." He wrote. "Your friend." He looked at it for a moment before scribbling it out. "Your best friend." Then he shook his head, scribbling it out once more. "Your brother, Crutchie."

"I believe in you guys." He whispered, before laying down and falling into a sleep filled with dreams of his brothers, holding him in celebration. They would win. Crutchie knew it for sure.

 **I think I literally cried during this chapter. Poor Crutchie. Thank you guys for reviewing and let me know if you're interested in the series. So far I know there will be three more of them if you want them. Anyways,**

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change or what you would improve. Goodnight lovelies!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hi guys! Sorry for the slight delay I was having a bit of a busy day today. Anyway... Guest reviewer, whoever you are, I would just like to say your review literally made my whole day. I was so happy to read that you love this story and I'd like to reply, you are a gift to me. No joke. I look forward everyday to reading your guys' reviews. They always make me happy. And I'd also like to say, it is very important to me that I stay true to this musical.**

 **Newsies is my all time favorite musical. I've loved it since the only Jack Kelly that there was had been Christian Bale and my love for it grew by a million when Jeremy Jordan started singin' Santa Fe. This musical has brought me through a lot, actually. I watch the live recording of Newsies at least once a week, mostly more. It is extremely important for me to keep true to the characters of this story and in glad you guys are telling me that I did. So thank you.**

 **Anyways, now for every fansies favorite song. Be careful. I don't want any heads spinning! Enjoy!**

Jack wiped his forehead as he stood and admired his handy work. He wiped his paint stained hands on the apron he wore. He sighed, looking into the painting of Santa Fe, trying to forget about all his worries and focus on the one place he believed he could start over, but no matter how hard he tried, Crutchie always worked his way into Jack's thoughts. And all the other boys too.

"Here's all I owe ya for both of these backdrops. And just a little something extra because I'm gonna miss you so." Medda had snuck up behind him at some point and Jack smiled at the soothing voice of the woman he knew he'd be dead without. But he turned around and shook his head when he saw the money in her hand.

"Miss Medda I-" he tried but she cut him off.

"Jack." She insisted, pushing it on him with a single word. The boy, reluctantly, took the money.

"You're a gem." He said, with a sad smile. Turning once again to his portrait of the one place he thought it might all be alright. But somewhere deep down, he knew it couldn't be without his brothers.

"Just tell me you're goin' somewhere." Medda asked, before putting an arm around her boy's shoulders. "And not runnin' away."

"Does it matter?" He asked, not rudely, but genuinely asking her if there was a difference.

"When your goin' somewhere and it's not the right place, you can always go somewhere else." She explained. "But if you're runnin' away, no where is ever the right place." Jack nodded and looked down at his hands in thought. But just as he was about to say he was done with this damned place, a voice may as well have saved the balance of everything. Jack, his boys, the strike, his entire future was changed in that moment when he heard a familiar sigh of relief.

"How bout lettin' a pal know you're alive!" Davey scolded as he made his way onto the stage from the door that they'd run through a few days prior. "Where'd ya go? We couldn't find ya!"

"I'll leave you with your friend." Medda smiled, before placing a motherly kiss on Jack's forehead and walking out of the room. Jack put down his paintbrushes and scoffed.

"Did ya eva' think I didn't wanna be found?" He asked, his anger rising up in him again, not at Davey, but at himself.

Dave ignored him and stepped around him to get a good look at the painting beside him. "Is that a real place?" He asked curiously. "That Santa Fe?" He smiled. Jack just rolled his eyes and turned around, but Davey followed him, forcing him into having a conversation with him. "Hey have you seen the news? We're one of the main stories!"

"Good for you." Jack said, in a tone that made it very clear he didn't care.

Davey shook it off and continued. "Everyone wants to meet the famous Jack Kelly! Even Spot Conlon sent over a boy to tell us, next event we can count on Brooklyn. How bout that?" He said, happily. But Jack still didn't budge.

"We'll get stomped into the ground." Jack mumbled, angrily, Crutchie's screams resurfacing in his mind.

David sighed. "Sure, they got us this time. I'll grant you that." He put a hand on Jack's shoulder. "But this fights far from over!" He insisted.

"They don't give a damn about us!" Jack blew up. "They ain't scared of a bunch of high school kids! This ain't helpin' nothin'! I see it in their eyes Dave! Every boy knows that we don't stand a chance. They got Crutchie and Race is next!" He cried helplessly.

"I was right there with 'em!" Davey cried. "But then I saw this look in Weasel's eye when we were fighting." He explained to Jack who looked like he was about to crumble into a million pieces. He leaned down to the hunched over boy and started to explain more. "He was actually nervous! Jack we have a chance!"

At that moment, little Les and Katherine walked in. "There he is, just like I said!" Les pointed to the two boys on the stage.

"For cryin' out loud," Jack groaned. "What's a guy gotta do ta get away from you people?" Davey just laughed and patted Jack on the back.

"There's no escapin' us pal, we're inevitable." He declared, in his own way letting Jack know they wouldn't let him go through this alone.

"So what's the story?" Les asked. "Can we have the theatre?"

Davey shook his head and ruffled his kid brother's hair. "Pipe down, I haven't asked yet." He stated calmly.

"Well what's the hold up?" The small ten year old crossed his arms. "I gotta let my girl know if we've got a date."

"Your girl?" Davey asked, looking up at Katherine who shrugged with an amused grin on her face.

"You heard me!" Les smiled, broadly. "I've been chased around all mornin' by the girls from the school across from ours." He sighed, "being famous is tough. My girl's name is Sally." He told them, before adding, "she's a plum." Even Jack laughed at that, it was small but it was there.

The strike leader, lightly pushed Les out of his way as he walked toward Katherine. "Word is you wrote a pretty great story." The response he got wasn't the one he'd expected.

"You look like hell." She was definitely concerned. But before Jack could respond, Les had seen the painting.

"Hey Jack, where's that supposed to be?" He asked, pointing at the beautiful green hills behind a giant lake beneath the sunset.

"It's Santa Fe." Davey answered easily before placing his hands on his brother's shoulders and admiring the scenery along with him.

Katherine groaned. "I gotta tell ya Jack, this whole 'city boy going out west' routine has gotten old." She said, walking past him and using air quotes. "Even Horace Greeley moved back to New York."

"Yes he did." Les turned, knowing this story all too well. "And then he died." Davey smacked him in the head at this and rolled his eyes.

"Ain't reporters sposed ta be non partisan?" Jack asked.

Katherine threw her hands up in defense. "Ask a reporter." She spat out bitterly. "Pulitzer's had me blacklisted from every news company in town." She sat down in a nearby chair, defeated.

"Can we get back to business?" Les butt in, starting to get annoyed. "Will Medda let us have the theatre, or not?"

Davey sighed. "It's what I've been tryin' ta tell ya!" He told Jack, placing a hand on his shoulder once more. "We wanna hold a rally! A city wide meeting, where everyone gets a vote!"

"Wow, you guys really are asking ta get committed to a padded room." Jack scoffed. If Crutchie were here, he'd know. Race too. Jack only acted like this when he was terrified and only his two closest friends knew him well enough to know that.

"Really?" Katherine gestured to the painting. "The guy who paints pictures of places he's never been is calling us crazy?" She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Oh! You wanna see a place I've seen?" He asked, angrily. Then he stepped up to the painting and turned it around. The sight made even him wanna scream. It was Pulitzer's boot and underneath it were the boys. They were being squashed by the man that owned them. They were screaming out but it was no use and if looked at close enough, the faces of every one of Jack's brothers could be seen. "All thanks to my big mouth!" He screamed, roughly gesturing to the big poster. "Boys were hurt, others arrested-"

"Oh lighten up, no one died." Davey regretted speaking after he realized what Jack was so mad about. Crutchie was a crippled boy in the Refuge. So far he hadn't heard much about what went on inside, but he knew a lot about what happened after. He'd heard about Race going mute, and Albert jumping at every contact with someone, Elmer not being able to sit still, Specs lashing out at everyone who touched one of his things. It couldn't have been good.

"Oh!" Jack yelled in sarcastic relief. "Is that what you're aimin' for?" He asked, stepping towards Davey. "Go ahead, call me a coward. Call me a quitter, but there ain't no way I am puttin' them kids back in danger!"

"You said it yourself Jack!" Davey broke. He didn't know what to do anymore, but maybe yelling would finally get his attention. "There was nothing else we could do! If we hadn't done this, Racetrack would've been the one in the Refuge! And who knows who they would've take after that? Albert? Elmer? Henry? Specs? It wouldn't end!"

Jack blinked back the tears that started building up in his deep green eyes. "Specs brought me a note, from Crutchie," he stated, pulling out the letter from his pocket and held it up as if it was proof. "So I tried to go see him. I went around the back and up the fire escape. But they beat him so bad, he couldn't even come ta the window!" He threw down his arm and yelled some more. "What if he don't make it? Are you willin' ta shoulder that? If we'd just not put up a fight-"

"We would've lost!" Davey cried. "Jack I know you're scared but this is a fight we have ta win!" He yelled.

"If I wanted a sermon, I'd show up for church." Jack growled. Getting up close to his friend's face, trying to intimidate him, but Davey always knew what to say, now didn't he?

"Tell me how quitting does Crutchie any good?" The tall brunette challenged.

Jack froze. Then he sputtered, desperately trying to find the right words. Or any words. But all that came out was gibberish.

"Exactly!" Davey pointed his finger into Jack's chest and lightly pushed him back. "So here's how it goes, once we win, and we will be winning, make no mistake-"

"We'll be what?" Jack asked, looking at Davey like he had two heads.

"We're already winning." He pointed but Jack once again, sarcastically cut him off.

"Right." But Dave ignored him and continued on.

"And we'll tell 'em straight out," he proclaimed, "they let Crutchie go, or they keep getting pounded!" He yelled hitting his fist into his hand in emphasis.

"Dave what the hell?!" He yelled, clearly making it known that his friend must've been losing it. "Did they bust up you're brains or somethin'?" He asked, shaking his hands around the other boy's head. "As I recall Dave, we all got our asses kicked! They won!" He gestured to the picture he'd drawn, in defeat.

"They won the battle." David agreed, reluctantly.

"Oh come on!" Jack cried, turning around, away from the optimistic teen.

"Jackie think about it!" Davey grabbed his friend's shoulder and spun him around. "We've got 'em surrounded!" He cried with a smile on his face.

"Here's what I think, Joe's a jerk!" Jack yelled. "He's a rattle snake!"

"You're right!" Davey agreed, but Jack had no idea why. "And ya know why a snake starts ta rattle?" He asked, knowing Jack didn't know the answer.

"No, why?" He asked, not really caring about the answer.

"Cause he's scared!"

"Sure." Jack scoffed and started to walk away, but Davey just stepped around him, blocking his way.

"Go and look it up." The smart boy challenged. "The poor guys head is spinning!" But when Jack still didn't quite believe him, he struggled to find the right words to make the boy feel like they could win. "Why would he send for the goons?" He said, referring to the first group of people that came out to fight them. "An entire army! Dozens of goons and the cops and-" Jack had finally started listening and gave in.

"You know you may be right." He spoke, hesitantly.

"Thank you God!" Davey shouted, relieved his friend was getting back into this fight.

"If he wasn't afraid." Jack nodded. Everything clicked into place. The cops coming to beat them was an act of fear.

"Exactly!" Davey shouted.

"He knows we're winnin'." Now Jack understood. And he knew this fight was far from over.

"Now cmon!" Katherine grabbed onto Jack's arm. "Get those kids to see that we're so close!" She encouraged.

"We're doin' somethin' that's never been done before!" Davey nodded. "Sure we're scared but we can do this!"

"But I can't undo the past, Davey!" Jack cried. He wanted his brother back in his arms. He wanted to see his boys smile because it was an alright life when they were with each other.

David shook his head and replaced his hand on his friend's shoulder. "So move on and get back on track."

"As long as we have a little faith." Katherine smiled.

"And we've got a plan." Dave added.

"And you!" Les shouted, pointing at the leader.

"We can do it Jack!" Davey encouraged and his face broke out in a huge grin when Jack cracked a smirk and nodded. Dave spit in his hand, followed by Les and a hesitant Katherine. Jack laughed and did the same, shaking each one of their hands.

"Alright fellas." Jack sighed. "We got a war ta win!"

 **As always, thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving me a review! Love ya babes!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Yup. I'm back already. I'm just a little bit bored right now. So here it is, I hope you enjoy! :)**

"Sorry Mr. Pulitzer, you can't raid the theatre. It's private property." The chief of police told the man that owned the school and ran it.

"Chief, would the fact that this rally is being run by an escaped convict be enough cause to shut it down?" Pulitzer asked as he typed away at his computer, at his desk. The chief stood directly in front of his desk and some of the staff stood scattered around the room and Katherine sat silently, watching as the scene unfolded in front of her. She was extremely nervous for the boys right now.

"An escaped convict?" The chief inquired. He leaned toward the principal to gather more information.

"A fugitive." Pulitzer nodded. "From one of your own institutions."

Katherine's mouth dropped at the words he said next, not believing what she was hearing.

"He's a convicted thief. He only causes trouble everywhere he goes." Pulitzer then gestured for the man behind him to step up. "Mr. Snyder? Which one is it?"

The hated man stepped toward the computer and pointed to one of the faces on the screen. "That one right there." He spoke in a low voice. "Jack Kelly."

The chief nodded. "How do you know this boy?" He asked, looking over at the computer screen from an odd angle.

"His isn't a pleasant story." Snyder sighed, pretending to give a damn. "He was first convicted for loitering and vagrancy." He shook his head in fake sympathy.

Katherine was shocked at these words. She'd heard from the boys that Jack hadn't been sent to the Refuge until after he was in a home. Now she didn't know who to believe. Jack was a thief? And he escaped? Did she even know him at all? The worse question was, did his boys know him at all?

"But his blatant disregard for authority made him a frequent visitor." Snyder finished, his voice becoming harsher and angrier.

The chief nodded again, and then sighed. "You called him a thief and an escaped convict." He stated, confused by all the previous statements.

Snyder nodded. "After his release I caught him red handed! He was trafficking stolen food and clothing." He sighed again as he finished. "He was last sentenced to six months but the boy escaped."

"Chief," Pulitzer stood, buttoning his jacket as he did so. "I can assure you, you'd be doing this city a great favor by removing this criminal from our streets."

Katherine shook her head. Lies. All lies. They had to be. She'd met Jack Kelly and yes, he may have seemed to be big headed and annoying but she'd seen him interacting with his brothers. He cared for them and protected them when no one else would. He loved them! This couldn't be true. He wasn't a danger to the streets. He was a born protecter.

"Alright." The chief gave in. "I suppose it will do no harm to bring in this criminal, quietly."

Making everyone in the room jump, Pulitzer slammed his hand down on his desk. "What good would quiet do me?!" He yelled. "I want to make a public example out of him!"

Katherine didn't know what to do. She was in between two people and didn't know how to get out. But she knew beyond everything else, she wanted to help those boys. They were just kids who'd seen things that these men had never had to experience. They were deeply scarred. She could see it in their eyes. She thought back to when she'd danced with them. Race, Romeo, Les, Specs, Albert, Elmer, Henry, all of them. They needed to be protected.

"Mr. Pulitzer!" Hannah ran into the room, seeming shocked and a little out of breath. "The boy," she pointed out the door. "Jack Kelly, is here!"

Katherine stood, wanting nothing more than to go out and warn the strike leader to go away before they forced him to do something he'd regret. But she saw the look on Pulitzer's face and stopped.

"Here?" Pulitzer asked, not quite believing that the boy would do so much as so stroll right into his office.

"Just outside." Hannah confirmed. "He's asked to see you."

"Ask and he shall receive." Pulitzer smiled. He turned to the warden of the Refuge. "Mr. Snyder, if you please?" He gestured to his chair, to which the other man smiled and sat down, turning himself away from the door. Pulitzer then rounded his desk to Katherine, pointing at the chair and before she could speak he commanded, "Sit." And she did, without a word, and let the man spin her around.

"Mr. Kelly." Hannah nodded as she lead the boy into the room. The boy had his hands loosely hanging from his pockets and he had a cocky grin on his face.

"Afternoon fellas." Jack greeted, smirking up at Pulitzer.

"And which Jack Kelly is this?" Pulitzer inquired. "The charismatic strike organizer, or the petty thief and escaped convict?"

Jack let out a light laugh. "Which one gives us more in common?" He asked, pointing in between both him and the old man.

"Impudence is in bad taste when crawling for mercy." Pulitzer responded, lazily leaning back on his desk.

Jack actually did laugh at this. "Crawlin'? That's a laugh!" He stepped forward and started to speak again. "Nah, I just stopped by with an invite. Seems bout a thousand of your oh so loyal students are gatherin' together over some recent, disagreements." Jack explained, his smirk not fading. "I only thought it'd be fair so you could state your case directly ta the fellas."

Pulitzer only glared at the cocky boy in front of him. "So whaddya say, Joe?" Jack asked, his voice quieter, practically mocking the man who ran the city.

"My, my," Pulitzer tisked. "You are just as shameless and disrespectful as I've heard. Do you wanna know what I was doing at your age, boy?" He spat out the word as if it was the most horrific thing he'd ever tasted. "I was on my way to the war."

Jack nodded. He knew what that felt like. But he wanted to ask this bastard if he'd ever had to run for his life because some older kids were after him and they were drunk. Or if he'd ever had to sleep in a dumpster holding his brother close because it was too damn cold to go any place else. Or he didn't eat for a week because some of his brothers were sick and starving. "And how'd that turn out for you?" He asked, his tone bored.

"It taught me a lesson." Pulitzer said, ignoring Jack's sigh of understanding. "It's not who wins on the battle field. It's the headlines that crowns the victor." He explained.

"I'll keep that in mind when the world wakes up to photos of our rally." Jack smirked.

"Oh rally all you want!" Pulitzer smiled, sarcastically. "Not one news station in the city is going to broadcast anything about your little charade. And if it's not reported, it never happened." He told the boy.

Jack's face became stone. He was angry. But none of that mattered. He would do this. He had to. He had to do it for his boys. "You may run this city, Joe." Jack growled as he took a step closer to the man. "But there are some of us who will not be bullied. Even some reporters!" He stated, confidently, though his face was still a mask of fury.

"Are you talking about that young woman who made you yesterday's news?" Joe asked, nodding as he remembered every word on the article that had the whole city intrigued. "Talented girl." He said, as if he was impressed. "And beautiful as well, don't ya think?"

Jack narrowed his eyes. That was a weird thing to say. "I'll tell her you said so." He laughed, a little creeped out but he turned, about to leave when Pulitzer spoke again.

"No need." He stated plainly. "She can hear for herself. Can't you darling?" The man smiled as the woman stood from her hiding place, an extremely sorry look on her face. She took a step toward her friend but he stepped back from her. "I believe you've met my daughter, Katherine." When he saw Jack's shocked face, Pulitzer laughed. "Yes." He sung. "I may have offered her an easy life, but she decided she wanted to chase a career. And she was showing real promise until this recent lapse." He pointed to the computer. "But you're done with all that now, aren't you sweetheart?"

"Jack I-" Katherine tried, stepping forward again, her heart breaking when Jack stepped back from her again.

"Don't burden the boy with your troubles, dearest." Pulitzer scolded, lightly. "He had his own problems." He then looked back towards his spun around chair. "Wouldn't you say so, Mr. Snyder?"

At the name, Jack spun on his heals, ready to make a run for it, but he saw the Delancey's and knew he was in serious trouble. They grabbed both his arms, restraining him as he struggled to get away. "Does anyone else feel a noose tightening?" Pulitzer joked and Jack growled as he tried, once again, to make a run for it. "But let me offer you a different scenario. You attend this rally as speak against this hopeless strike and, I'll have your criminal record wiped clean." The man promised. "I'll fill your pockets with enough money to get you from New York to New Mexico." He said and he turned to his daughter who looked more guilty than he'd ever seen her. "You did say he wanted to travel west, didn't you darling?"

"There ain't a person in this room that don't know you stink." Jack growled.

"And if they know me," Pulitzer countered. "They know I don't care." Jack still shook his head and the man walked up to where the teen was being held in place. "Listen and listen good boy," he demanded. "If you defy me, I will personally see all of your little friends ripped from whatever sad life they have, and thrown into the Refuge."

Jack wanted nothing more than to be able to punch the man right in the face. He stood with a helpless look on his face. He couldn't do this. Not to his boys.

"All of this to save a lazy, loud mouth, slacker from spending two weeks in the Refuge." At the mention of his best friend, Jack tried to lunge for the evil man, but was held back. "It's not right. Was it worth all this to have that poor, weak, little crippled boy thrown in there instead?"

"Stop talkin' about my boys like ya know 'em!" Jack yelled. He couldn't stand it when the evil man mentioned his two best friends.

"What about that new friend of yours... Davey, and his baby brother? Ripped from their loving family and thrown to the rats. Could they ever thank you enough?" Pulitzer threatened. Jack shook his head and scowled at him. "Times running out kid. What do you say? Not that I really care. I win either way." Pulitzer laughed.

"Gentlemen, please escort our guest down to the basement so he can make his decision in solitude." Joe asked the Delancey brothers that still held Jack tightly.

Katherine couldn't be there anymore. She stormed out of the room in search of any of the boys. She needed to talk to them.

"Tonight," Pulitzer said, before following the boys out the office door. "Your friends may not be so lucky. Do the right thing Jack. Protect your friends. I know you care about them. Don't let them all be taken to the place where you surely promised them all they would never go."

Jack was dragged to the basement by the Delancey's. "Behave!" Morris demanded. "Cause we got orders ta handle ya howeva' we see fit."

Jack looked around. The basement looked to be an old news classroom. There was an old camera that stood in front of an old desk for reporters to sit at while they told their latest stories. Jack hadn't even known this place existed.

"See ya later Jackie." The brothers waved before leaving him locked in the basement. But Jack swore he saw a spec of guilt on both of their faces before they slammed the door.

Jack laid down on the floor, praying for any sort of answer that God would give him. All he wanted was for his brothers to be safe. He just didn't know how.

 **Well there you have it. These people are awful. Anyways I am very excited to tell you guys that I am about to upload another story. Momentarily actually. I haven't finished it yet but I think I wrote it so well that I have to post it. I'm so excited about it. It's not the sequal to this, it's a different fanfiction, also modern day AU. I hope y'all go check it out. It's called Working With What We Got. I'm so excited! It's a lot more intense than this one, and it's also a bit more suspenseful so I hope you go check it out.**

 **Anyways, thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving me a review! See you soon kids! ;)**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hi again! This is a short chapter but I still love it! I just love the king of Brooklyn!**

 **And yay! I love answering questions!!**

 **KatherineRoseTiggular: thank you so much! And my favorites who played those characters are exactly the same as yours. Andrew Keenan Bolger as Crutchie, definitely, no one will ever replace him and do as fantastic as he did. Jeremy Jordan as Jack because he gets so into it and is just so passionate about it and while Corey Cott is a very close second, I just think Jeremy Jordan wore the hat better. Ben Fankhauser as Davey because I love him and he's perfect in every way. And Kara Lindsey as Katherine because she's so bubbly and adorable and she's just my idol. I could honestly tell you that the cast that was in the live version was my favorite. The only change I would make would be Andy Richardson playing Romeo and maybe a different Les. Not that he was bad, but I think he could've been better. Thanks for asking!**

 **Enjoy!**

Race sat on the edge of the stage, his iconic cigar shoved between his teeth. He stared off into space as they simply sat there and hoped that the others would show. On one side, Davey sat with Les right next to him. On his other side sat Romeo. The boy leaned into Race as the older boy had an arm around his little brother. The other Newsies sat in the house, chatting nervously with each other.

Jack was still no where to be found, which worried Race. If Jack wasn't here, chaos would surely break out. But he couldn't think about that when the door was slammed open and in walked the king of Brooklyn and his entourage. "Neva' fear, Brooklyn's here!" He yelled, walking straight up to Race and Davey who sat on stage. "Hiya boys!" He greeted, before spitting into his hand and extending it to the two of them. They both followed suit and did the same.

"I was havin' trouble believin' you'd show, Conlon." Race stated as he shook the other boy's hand. Spot just smiled.

"Well you guys needed help." He said, simply. "Once we got word that our buddies were hurtin' and in a real disaster, we couldn't just leave ya all alone out there." Race smiled at his friend. Most people didn't know that before Spot was the king of Brooklyn, he was part of the Manhattan group. He was one of Race's best friends. "The calvary's here boys." He assured.

"Thanks Spot." Davey spoke, smiling, finally relieved. And it only got better as boys from every borough were filing in.

"We've got your back." The king smiled, playfully knocking down Romeo's cap, smiling as the boy did. "What they did ta Crutchie," he muttered. "It ain't right." He said looking up at a saddened Racetrack. "We'll get'cha some well deserved payback."

"Thanks pal." Race said. He pulled Romeo a bit closer to him as more and more boys filled the room.

"Say Race," Spot spoke, curiously as well as sarcastically. "Ya eva' gonna light that thing?"

Race laughed at that. "You know the answer ta that." He ignored Davey's curious look and just went back to his conversation with Spot. After a few minutes, almost the entire theatre was filled with boys from all over New York. Spot turned around and grinned. "Roll call!" He shouted through his hands that were cupped around his mouth to make him heard.

"Manhattan!"

"Flushing!"

"Richmond!"

"Woodside!"

"The Bronx!" At this all the kids in the theatre blew raspberries at Smalls as the young boy called out the name of their town.

"Brooklyn!"

Spot turned back to Davey and grinned. "Let's give these soakers a soakin'!"

 **I hope you enjoyed this little light chapter. Sorry it was so short but hey, Brooklyn's here now so it's all ok. I love Spot Conlon.**

 **As always, thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving me a review. And, yeah, feel free to ask me any questions you may have. I'm always happy to answer them. See ya later babes!**


	19. Chapter 19

Davey and Spot spit shook as the stood on stage. The boys all cheered in excitement and it only grew as Medda took the stage.

"Welcome boys!" She yelled. "Welcome my theatre and to your revolution!"

"And let's hear it for Spot Conlon and Brooklyn!" Davey shouted. The applause grew. Spot smiled and waved cockily, then he cut off the cheers by raising his hands above his head and making a swift cut off motion. The applause stopped all at once and Spot smirked.

"Let's see what Pulitzer's got ta say ta ya now." He smiled, mischievously.

"Hey Davey!" Finch yelled from the balcony he was hanging from. "Where's Jack?"

"Yeah where's Jack?" Someone else called. Soon enough, the entire theatre was filled with a chant for Jack. Davey's eyes filled with desperation as he walked over to Medda for help.

"Sorry kid, no sign of him yet." She sighed, her hands on her hips. "Looks like you're doin' this one solo."

Davey began to argue. He couldn't do this. Jack had always been the one the boys looked up to. He was the one they listened to. But he guessed there was no other way. "Hey!" He cried, gaining all the boys attention. "Look at what we've done!" He gestured to the audience. "We've got every World school boy from across the city here tonight. Tonight you're making history! Tonight we declare that we are just apart of this world as anyone else!" He shouted, his heart leaping as all the boys shouted in approval. "From now on, they won't treat us like helpless kids, they will treat us as equals!" He pointed in the air to get his point across and he smiled when the crowd went wild.

"You wanted to be treated like an adult?" A familiar voice echoed through the now silent theatre. It was amazing what Jack could do just by walking in a room. "Start acting like one! Don't just run your mouth, make some sense."

Race narrowed his eyes at his older brother. His tone wasn't upbeat or optimistic at all, as it almost always was. The older boy was angry, not at anyone here, more at himself. He was feeling guilty. It took all of Race's strength not to pull the boy aside and reprimand him for leaving so abruptly and not telling him where he was. Though Race and Jack seemed very close, they did get into many arguments. However, most of the time Jack was the calm one and Race was the one that blew up at everything.

"And here's Jack Kelly!" Davey introduced his friend, who was neither smirking or smiling at the thunderous applause. Something wasn't right.

"Alright!" Jack screamed, hearing enough of the happy, excited cheers for him. He couldn't take it. Not with what he was about to say. "Pulitzer," Jack spat out the wicked name, "he changed school policy. He sent the bulls after boys, our brothers," the leader corrected himself, remembering Crutchie's letter and somehow finding Race's face in the center of the house somewhere. "And that was a lousy thing ta do."

He tried to take his eyes off of Race, who sat with Albert and Romeo. In fact, he tried to avoid any of his boys' gazes. "And we ain't gonna be pushed around." Jack growled. "So we go on strike." He explained, gesturing around the room. "And then what happens? Well Pulitzer, he changes the policy back. And then," he says, before the boys can cheer. "A few weeks later, he changes it again. And again after that! Fellas we gotta be realistic!" Jack made the mistake of catching Racetrack's eyes.

No one but Jack knew what each boy went through in the Refuge. Most were beaten, some were starved and locked away in solitude for days at a time. And some had it much, much worse. Race happened to be one of those who'd had it worse. And he felt like he was betraying everyone of his boys by saying what had to be said next.

"If we don't go ta school, we don't graduate and we don't get outta here. We're stuck." Jack said, trying his hardest to keep his voice even. "But I've spoken ta Mr. Pulitzer," he stated, looking at one group of boys he'd never met, trying to ease his own pain of his betrayal. "And he's given me his word that if we end this now, the Refuge will only be in question for those that all teachers agree need ta go. We could also get that in writing." A loud outburst broke out among the boys of New York City. They were shouting arguments. But Jack saw his boys. They all sat there, completely stunned.

"Ya lousy little liar!" Spot pushed him and Jack never saw it coming. But he was pushed onto the side of the stage where the chief of police stood, a stack of cash in his hand. Jack took it and scowled at himself. He'd never loathed himself more than he did right then. Then he felt a tap on his back and, all to quickly, his arm was up, ready to strike whoever was behind him. When he turned to see an innocent face of the boy he promised himself he'd never hurt, and he looked up to see Davey looking at him with such a look of disappointment, it took all of Jack's will power to not break down right there. Instead he blocked out the sound of his boys running from the bulls that had flooded the room and quickly escaped from the chaos.

Jack didn't know what else to do but go back to his apartment. After all, he'd failed. He failed Crutchie, Race, Davey, Les, all of them. They were his family and he turned his backs on them. He was no better than the parents that had beaten and abandoned them. So Jack ran. He ran while wiping at his tears and all he could think was, "I, Jack Kelly, have failed."

 **Here's another short chapter. It was hard to write. Those poor kids.**

 **Anyways I'll probably update this story again pretty soon and in the mean time, don't forget to check out the other story that I've started posting: Working With What We Got. I've gotten one response for it (thank you by the way to KatherineRoseTiggular for reviewing). It's gonna be a little more intense than this one but I love writing it.**

 **Thank you for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving me a review! See ya later babes!**


	20. Chapter 20

Jack had started running home when his mind took him else where. Somehow he ended up standing in front of the Refuge. He wanted so badly to have the reassurance of his little brother but he couldn't look the kid in the eyes and tell him what he'd just attempted to do. He felt like a lousy trickster. So he stood, staring at the window from the ground, the one that separated him from his best friend, for about a half hour. Then he left. He walked home, trying to think of anything but everything he loved in the world. His boys. He wanted to forget. Maybe they'd be better off without him.

Jack climbed up the fire escape to his own apartment, climbing in the window, ready to collapse in his bed. Instead he found a girl that looked like she was a deer caught in the headlights. She had many drawings in her hands and she almost dropped them when she saw him. But she quickly got over her initial shock and started to speak.

"That was some speech you made." Katherine stated. Jack shook his head. He should've known she was there.

"How'd you get here?" Jack demanded stalking up to her. He'd just had the worst day of his life and now he couldn't even enter his own home without something else to worry about, like some lying backstabber.

"Specs showed me." She answered, plainly. She was still a bit nervous about how he'd react to her being in his house.

Jack barely let her finish before he ripped his drawings from her hands and started rolling them back up. "Oh and he said you could go through my stuff?" He yelled. He'd had enough. No more of this. He wanted to go. So, so badly.

"I saw them rolled up and sticking out of there!" Katherine defended, pointing at the container by Jack's side of the bed. "I didn't know what they were." She added, softer than her last sentence. She sighed, hoping that those horrific drawings weren't what she thought they were. "Those are drawings of the Refuge aren't they?" She asked and when Jack froze, not turning from where he was putting his drawings back where they belonged. "Is that really what it's like? Three boys to a bed? Rats and vermin everywhere?"

Jack scoffed. "Oh, what? A little different from where you were raised?" He asked, rudely, still on edge.

Katherine ignored him and continued on, getting to a point that she now understood. "Snyder told my father you were arrested stealing food and clothes." It all made sense now. Jack was a born protecter. "This is why isn't it? You stole to feed those boys." She concluded. She wasn't sure she'd ever understand the boy in front of her, but she was finding herself falling. And falling fast. "I don't understand!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "If you were willing to go to jail for those boys, why would you turn your back on them now?"

"Oh you are not one to talk about turnin' your back on people." Jack turned to her abruptly as he spoke, sneering at her. She'd sold them out. She put him and his boys in danger by telling her father all of their plans.

"I never turned my back on you or anyone else." Katherine defended, putting her index finger up as if to prove her point.

"No." Jack agreed sarcastically. "No you just sold us out ta your father!" He yelled. "Your father!" He said again, in disbelief.

"My father has eyes on every corner of the city, he does not need me to spy for him." Katherine defended. "And I never lied." She stated. The she hesitantly added, "I didn't tell you everything..."

Jack scoffed. "If you weren't a girl, you'd be tryin' ta talk with a fist in your mouth." He growled, shaking his fist at her.

"I told you I went to the Sun and I did. I told you my professional name was Plumber, and it is." The reporter shrugged. "You never asked my real one." She didn't see how he could possibly be blaming her for what was happening. He was the one that was trying to run from the problem. What was worse was he was running from his boys. His family.

"I wouldn't think I had to, 'less I knew I was dealin' with a backstabber!" He shouted, gesturing to her.

"Oh and if I was a boy, you'd be looking at me through one swollen eye!" She shouted back, harshly placing her fist right underneath Jack's chin. He growled and opened up his arms in surrender.

"Don't let that stop ya, huh? Give me your best shot!" He challenged, scowling at her. The next thing he knew, all his anger was melted away as her lips were on his.

Katherine didn't know what happened. She was furious at this boy who had turned his back on innocent kids who didn't know what to do without him. But there was more. There was always more. And then she looked into his eyes... it... it all happened so fast and suddenly she found herself unable to stop herself from kissing him. And suddenly they were both lost with each other. Then she realized what she'd done and immediately pulled away, shocked at herself.

Jack tried to form words when she broke away, but found himself unable. He soon found himself moving toward her for more but she backed away and he stopped himself too. He brushed his fingers against his lips, just to be sure it really happened. This girl was full of surprises wasn't she?

After a moment of silence to get over the shock of what just happened, Katherine finally broke it. "I need to know..." she started softly, "you didn't just cave for the money." She hoped beyond all hope that she had been right about Jack Kelly from the start. Suddenly Jack looked more helpless than Katherine had ever seen him.

"Nah I-" his voice cracked and Jack felt even more ashamed than he already was. He sighed and started again. "I spoke the truth. Ya win a fight when you got the otha' guy eatin' the pavement." He cried out helplessly. "You heard your father! He ain't eva' givin' up!" He flopped down on the mattress on the ground and put his head in his hands. "I don' know what else we can do." He muttered.

"Oh, but I do." Katherine smiled, cockily.

Jack looked up at her in disbelief. "Come on." He mumbled.

"Really Jack? Really?" The reporter put her hands on her hips, annoyed. "Only you can have a good idea?" Just as Jack opened his mouth to respond, she added, "Or is it because I'm a girl?" She asked.

Jack stood up immediately. "Hey I never said nothin' bout-"

"Now would be a good time to shut up." Katherine said, pointing at Jack's forehead and smirking until he stood there, crossing his arms and smiling at her, yet still defeated. With his folded arms he gestured for her to continue. "Being the boss doesn't mean you have all the answers." She explained. "It means that you have the brain to know the right one when you hear it."

Jack nodded, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't he spoke. "I'm listening." He said in acknowledgment.

She gasped, "Good for you." She teased, making him smile for the first time in what felt like days. She pulled a folded up piece of paper out of her back pocket and started showing it off in her hands. "The strike was your idea, the rally was Davey's and my idea," she held up the paper, letting it fall unfolded, right in Jack's face. "Will take us to the finish line. Deal with it." She smirked.

Jack grabbed the paper out of her hand and read it over. It was a script for a news program. "The children's crusade." He spoke, intrigued. And Katherine walked past him, with stars in her eyes as she quoted something else.

"For the sake of all the kids on the street and every child with bruises or burns on 'em for somethin' they didn't do, I beg you throw down your bags and join the strike." Jack smiled.

"That was me." He nodded. All he had been thinking about was meeting every single one of his boys.

"With those words, you challenged our entire generation to stand up and demand a place at the table." Katherine said.

"The children's crusade." Jack said again. He liked it. And to be honest, all he wanted to do was win this fight for his brothers. His only family.

"Think Jack!" Katherine turned to him, excited. "If we broadcast my words with... one of your drawings!" She ran over to the container and shook it for emphasis. "We could get every kid in the city to stay home from school... or better yet, have them come to The World and rally! A city wide strike? Even my father couldn't ignore that!" She laughed, lightly hitting Jack in the arm.

Jack smiled at her before something occurred to him. This may all be for nothing. "Only one problem," he sighed. "We ain't got a way to broadcast this."

"Oh come on!" Katherine encouraged. "There has to be one studio in the city that we could use." She said, optimistically.

Jack leaned against the kitchen counter and sighed, putting his head in his hands for a split second before he remembered something and his head shot back up. "Oh no." He groaned. "Oh no." He said again, but a smile grew on his face. Katherine walked up to him with a questioning look on her face. "I know where there's a set, no one would ever think we'd use!" He laughed.

"Then why are we still standing here?!" Katherine grabbed his arm and started dragging him to the window. "Come on!"

"Wait wait wait wait wait!" Jack stopped. She looked up at him, confused. "What is this about for you?" He asked and then quickly specified. "I'm not talkin' bout the strike. What's this about?" He said gesturing to the two of them. "Am I... am I kiddin' myself or is there really somethin'..." Jack stopped himself. He didn't wanna say it. That would make it real. And Jack didn't want it to be real. It would be too much for him to handle. But boy was he falling. And he was falling fast.

"Of course there is." Katherine shrugged, almost nonchalantly. She smiled at him and was confused when he got offended.

"Well don't just say it like it happens everyday!" Jack shouted.

"Jack-" Katherine tried, but was cut off.

"No!" Jack yelled and then calmed himself as best he could, trying to imagine his best friend's voice in his head, keeping him calm. "No, I'm not an idiot." He sighed. "I know that girls like you don't go for guys like me." The boy tried his best not to look into Katherine's mesmerizing eyes. "I just don't want ya makin' promises you'll take back lata'." He mumbled, somewhat self-consciously. All he could do was stare at her for a moment as she stood there, speechless. And then there eyes met. "Standin' here... tonight... lookin' at'cha... I'm scared tomorrow's gonna come and change everythin'." He spoke, nervously. "I wish I could grab ahold of somethin' and time would stop so I could just keep lookin' at'cha." He said, holding his hands up around her in a frame, doing his best to freeze time.

Katherine didn't move as she spoke. No one had ever said that to her. She felt like the luckiest girl in the world that the boy that said it to her was the famous Jack Kelly. The boy she tried to deny her love for. But she couldn't. This boy was no boy. He was a man. A father and an older brother to a group of kids with nothing and no one. A guy who would risk himself to save anyone who needed saving.

"You snuck up on me Jack Kelly." She laughed, nervously, tears glistening in her eyes. "I never even saw it coming." She shook her head. She never knew that love could catch her off guard like that. She always thought she knew what love was.

"For sure?" He said, his thick New York accent taking over completely.

"For sure." She imitated his voice, making him laugh. "I thought I knew what love was, Jack. But now I know... it's not predictable. The world is a dark place but sometimes it surprises you." She laughed once at the irony of the world. It had been harsh and cruel to her sometimes but it gave her something she needed. "It gave me something to believe in." She stepped up close to him, their faces only inches apart now. "And I promise you Jack Kelly," she spoke softly, her breath tickling his skin. "If your gone tomorrow, nothing will change between us. You believed in me Jack." She bit her lip before continuing. "And now I believe in you."

Jack smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I neva' thought I was meant ta meet someone. But then I ran inta you." He laughed. "And you had ta be an angel, Katherine. And you gave me something to believe in too." He then pulled her into a kiss, passionately, and held her tighter.

And then Jack knew. He'd fallen. And there was no turning back.

 **Yay! Super sappy love chapter! I love it!**

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change and what you'd improve. See ya babes!**


	21. Chapter 21

**I'm gonna be honest, I don't think I did this part of the story as much justice as it deserves. Once And For All made me cry when I saw this in theatres three times. It was definitely one of my favorites and still is one of my favorite songs to watch.**

 **I hope you guys enjoy!**

"I'll get the lights!" Katherine exclaimed while running to the other side of the basement from door they just snuck through. "You get those windows unlocked!

Jack nodded and ran over to the one window on the other side of the room, catching the keys that the girl threw at him. For a moment he stood there, stunned. "You've got enough keys here ta unlock the whole buildin'." He stated in surprise. "Someone been pickin' Daddy's pocket?" He teased.

Katherine laughed. "The janitor has been working here for twenty years." She explained. "He's never had a raise. He's with us one hundred percent."

Jack smiled at that. It was good to know he and his brothers weren't the only one with grudges against Pulitzer. But then he turned to find Davey and Race run in behind them. Race's face made him want to tear up with guilt. He looked at the boy that had become one of his closest friends, along with Crutchie. He was having trouble even looking at Jack so he quietly and quickly walked around him and sat up on the desk in the middle of the room, in front of the camera.

Jack shook it off and walked up straight to Davey. "Hey! Ya bring the fellas? What's happenin'?" He asked, cupping Dave's shoulder. The taller boy smiled.

"We could hold a ho down in here and no one would be the wiser." Davey smirked. He was really starting to get a hang of being one of the boys. Mischievous, sneaky and... doing it all to protect his brothers.

Jack grinned. "Good job." He then attempted to turn back to Katherine and the two men she'd brought in with her, but before he could, Davey spoke again.

"It's good to have you back again." He smiled. A few days ago, Davey didn't know anything about the famous Jack Kelly, but now? Now he knew everything he did was to protect. And he'd almost lost his path.

Jack paused for a moment. No one had ever said that to him before. But instead of getting all mushy, Jack just scoffed. "Shut up." He said, as if annoyed, and Davey just chuckled.

"Here it is boys!" Katherine exclaimed, gesturing to the old studio. "Just think, while my father snores blissfully in bed, we," she said, spinning around, acknowledging everyone in the room. "Will be bringing him down with his own studio!"

Jack walked passed, Katherine, thinking she might be a little too excited to be part of this. He then realized how far he'd gone as he stood next to Race. The boy still had yet to say a word and would not look Jack in the eyes. All Jack could think to do was joke it off. "Remind me not to get on her bad side." He laughed, hopping up next to his younger friend.

Race let a ghost of a smile lighten his face and he looked up to the others in the room. "So this is where they used to record the news?" The sixteen year old asked the two older gentlemen whom Katherine had brought with her.

"Well," one of them spoke while inspecting the single camera that stood in front of them. "I can see why they don't use this space anymore, but I don't see why we can't make it work for one night."

"Jack, this is Darcy." Katherine introduced. "He knows everything there is to know about broadcasting."

Jack smiled and hopped off the desk, spitting in his hand and holding it out to the other man to shake. When Darcy gave him a disgusted look Jack quickly wiped off his hand on his jeans.

"Sorry." He muttered, shaking the man's hand with a smile. His grin broadened as Race laughed behind him.

"Darcy and Bill, here." She said, gesturing to the other man in the room that was trying to clear off the messy desk that Race still occupied. "Work for the news company I have an internship at." She explained.

"Were happy to be apart of your revolution!" Bill ran up to Jack, shaking his hand and returning to his works, practically shoving Race off of the desk.

"Alright, in the words of the little one, can we get back to business?" Katherine asked, throwing her arms up in the air in anticipation.

"Alright," Davey chuckled and walked into the middle of the room. "Here's how we'll do this. Race," he pointed at the boy, who Jack had his hand on the back of, and the blond looked up at him, waiting quietly for instructions. "While we get the cameras working, you go let the fellas in. After that-"

"After that it's all up to the kids." Jack finished, and Davey nodded. Race hopped off of the table and ran over to the window, holding it open and waiting for each of his brothers to climb through.

"We can do this." Jack mumbled to himself. Little did he know, Davey and Katherine had heard him. The tall boy sighed and walked over to the strike leader.

"We're gonna show them who we are Jack. It'll be ok." He put a hand on the other boy's shoulder and smiled.

"Hell," Katherine joined, standing next to Jack. "We haven't come this far just to lose." She assured.

"Here they come!" Race called as boys started filing through the window, each of them ready to fight a battle.

Jack let out a breath and looked up at his new friend who he may have never gotten this far without. "Let's do this. Write it in ink or in blood, it's the same either way." Davey nodded and Jack turned to his boys, proclaiming to them. "They're gonna damn well pay!"

"Listen up boys!" Davey shouted, motioning for them all to gather around. After that, Jack took the lead.

"Pulitzer," he pointed outside, doing his best to ignore the fact that Katherine was in the room. "He don't give a damn weather we live or die." He said. "He's layin' down on three satin pillows while we are beggin' for food and water ta survive." His voice became angry as he continued on. "Well, tonight he's gonna see us for what we are!" He proclaimed, his heart becoming lighter as he heard his brothers agreements. "Once and for all, if they don't mind their manners we'll bleed 'em!"

"Now we only carry banners that say freedom!" Race yelled, holding up a banner that Jack recognized as Crutchie's. The boy was still in that awful prison.

The boys all shouted in their defiant agreements at that.

Jack ran back over to Katherine, who stood to the side of all the boys. "You've got a very important man ta see." He said. She nodded and placed a hand on his chest.

"Keep your fingers crossed." She smiled, starting to back away before he grabbed her wrist and held her hand in place.

"For us too." He looked into her eyes and found it hard to stop. She nodded and pulled away, crossing her fingers before running off."

"Let's do this!" Jack shouted and the cameras were turned on and a story that would touch the hearts of every kid in New York was being filmed.

 **Yay! I got another question!**

 **KatherineRoseTiggular: Ah! Make me chose one?! How can I? Ok here's a long response you probably weren't expecting. I've gotta go through all my favorites first. So first is, of course, That's Rich, because F yes Medda Larkin, you go girl! Then there's Seize the day because it's Seize The Day. The dance makes me so happy every time I watch it. They're just fantastic. But King of New York, especially in the live recording, is everything. As you all know by now, Ben Tyler Cook is the frikin love of my life. He's fantastic and the dance just I love it so much. But... Once and for All. That one is the most powerful one by far. It is so amazing and it makes me smile every time I hear it. I'm still a bit torn but if I'd have to chose one right now I'd say Once and For All.**

 **Thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change and what you'd improve by leaving me a review! Love ya kids!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Beware. This chapter gets a little deep.**

 **Omg I love the questions! Keep em comin'!**

 **KatherineRoseTiggular: Well Snyder's the character I hate the most but I feel like that's a given. He hurts my boys and that's not ok. But if your asking me which is my least favorite Newsie I'm afraid there's no such thing. I love them all in a different way. I would also love you head your answer to this questions. And everyone else's for that matter! Thanks for asking!**

The phones were going crazy. Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, it was never ending.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Pulitzer will have ta get back to ya."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Pulitzer is not available."

"He can't talk, he'll call you back!"

"I'm sorry ma'am... I'm sorry!"

"Silence those phones!" Pulitzer demanded, banging his fist down on the desk of his office, scaring his employees, Hannah Bowery and Mr. Seitz, causing one of them to drop the phones they'd been answering. Immediately, they shut the things off.

"The entire city is shut down!" Seitz yelled, overwhelmed. "They're all blaming you!"

"Such language." Bowery scoffed, practically collapsing into a nearby chair.

"You can't just barge in here!" Pulitzer heard Bunsen yell from the other side of the office door, seconds before a teenage boy threw the door open and ran into the room. The boy didn't even look at the three adults in the room before smoothly sliding into Pulitzer's chair and rolling over to the computer, quickly typing something and turning the screen around to the school employees, smirking as a video played on the screen.

Pulitzer glared at the teenage boys, the ones that convinced the entire city, his entire city, to stop working because he was being "unfair". "You're behind this." He all but growled.

Jack smirked and shrugged. "We had a deal!" Pulitzer yelled, enraged. Jack let out a laugh before jumping to his feet and pulling a pile of cash out of his pocket.

"And it came with a money back guarantee." The boy mocked, throwing the money down on the desk. Then he leaned over, lowering his voice a bit. "Oh and, uh, thanks for that lesson about the power of the press." He said, a bit sarcastically. It truly was ironic.

"Boss," Seitz spoke, intrigued in the video playing on his bosses computer. "Have you seen this?" He asked. "These kids put out a pretty good story!"

Jack smirked and laughed a bit at that. He was glad that the adults who didn't give a damn about them yesterday were starting to see them for what they were, human.

"No doubt written by my daughter." Pulitzer sighed.

"Ya know, if I were you, I'd sign her ta one of your own companies before someone else grabs her." Jack commented, the smile never fading from his face, especially as he talked about the girl he was quickly falling for.

Pulitzer growled. "I demand to know who defied my orders of bans on this story!"

Jack put a hand over his heart and suddenly looked very offended. "Oh no no no, Joe," he clicked his tongue. "We are your loyal students. We don't go to no station that ain't owned by the best."

Seitz face palmed and sighed. "That old studio, down in the basement."

"Oh." Hannah Bowery put the pieces together in her head, nodded and Jack just laughed.

"I gave you the opportunity of a lifetime." Pulitzer shook his head, disappointed. "Any one who does not act in their own self-interest is a fool!" He gestured wildly to Jack and before the boy could get a word in, two other boys ran through the door and the tall one spoke.

"What does that make you?" Davey asked. Jack stared at him, trying to hide the fear in his eyes. His boys were his brothers, and he'd protect them with his life, but Davey, he was right there, Pulitzer could no doubt have him taken for even speaking out of turn. Ripped away from his family.

Davey took a step back as he saw all eyes in the room on him. Jack's, Pulitzer's, Spot's and all of the staff too. Even he had to admit it was overwhelming. "All this started," he continued, hesitantly. "Because you wanted the kids in this school to start making you look better." He pointed out, and then gestured around the room and the empty school. "You've made your own image look like a monster!" He yelled, confused. "Why didn't you just come talk ta us?"

"People like Joe," Jack stated flatly, "don't talk ta nobodies like us." He stood and started walking up to the man that seemed to live to make his life a living hell. "But a very wise reporter once told me, that ta be the boss, ya don't always have ta have the answers." He explained, using Katherine's words. "Ya just gotta be smart enough ta know the right one when ya hear it."

Yelling was heard from outside the windows. Chants and angry cries of hope filled the ears of each member of the staff and Pulitzer practically ran over to the window to see what the hell was happening. Spot smirked. "Have a good look down there, Pulitzer." He instructed. "'Case ya haven't noticed, we got ya surrounded." He stated, his strong arms folded neatly across his chest.

"The city's shut down. Paralyzed." Jack sat back down, leaning back, putting his arms, comfortably, behind his head. "Ya can't go shoppin', ya can't go down the street for a cup of coffee, hell," Jack scoffed, "ya can't even get outta your own damn office." He smirked along with Spot and Davey, who were on his left. "So what's your next move?"

Just then, Bunsen burst through the door. "Mr. Pulitzer! The mayor's here! With your daughter!" He gasped.

Pulitzer looked to the door as three people walked through it, trying his best to contain his shock.

"What have you done now Joseph?" The mayor stepped forward and Jack stepped back, along with Davey and Spot. The mayor was here. To help them. To help him. Maybe they had a good chance after all. Maybe people did care.

"Mr. Mayor-" Pulitzer tried, but the Mayor cut him off.

"I heard from a very talented, young lady with a pretty smile that you sir, are not considering some very important young boys that attend your school here." He said.

Jack looked over at Medda and Katherine. The younger woman smiled at him and nodded.

"You are taking advantage of these poor, innocent children." The mayor growled. "Now you're going to change back the policy." He demanded. "The information that I got from this woman," he gestured to Medda, who smiled and waved at Pulitzer, almost mocking him. "Was that, that boy you almost had dragged off to the Refuge was late so often because he was taking his little brother to the middle school around the back of your campus." He explained. Pulitzer's face became blank. Most of them guessed it was because he was a bit shocked. "Now all that boy is guilty of is being a good brother, along with these three I presume." He pointed to Jack and Davey and Spot, and the three nodded. Then he took a step towards the leader. "Jack Kelly?"

Jack tried to speak and his voice squeaked a bit. He cleared his throat as he heard Spot laugh and stretched out his hand to the mayor. "Yes, Mr. Mayor." He responded.

The mayor held up photos. Photos that looked incredibly familiar to Jack. They were his. His drawings. "These are yours?" Jack nodded, not meeting the man's eyes. The mayor smiled a bit in encouragement. "Thank you for allowing us to finally unleash an investigation of Warden Snyder. I've been wanting to do that for years!"

Jack looked up, shocked. And then he looked over at Davey who smiled and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Mr. Mayor-" Pulitzer tried again, but was cut off.

"Joseph, I suggest you leave these boys alone if you don't want to have the same thing happen to you." The mayor threatened, turning on the principal.

Pulitzer glared at the other man. "You wouldn't." He growled.

"Try me." The mayor challenged back. When all Pulitzer did was straighten himself up, trying to keep at least a little of his pride, the man continued. "Now tell all these boys the good news." He demanded.

The principal looked over at the mayor, confused. "What good news?" He scoffed.

"The good news that you've come to your senses and changed back the policy." Mayor explained, like it was obvious.

For a moment, Pulitzer just stood there, glaring at every person in that room that was against him. Including his own daughter. She didn't at all seem fazed by his look of betrayal. He then cleared his throat. "I need to speak with Mr. Kelly." He said, rounding back around his desk and leaning over it. "Alone."

Everyone in the room froze for a moment before the powerful man gave them all a very serious, and slightly threatening, look. They all then walked past Jack, leaving him with the man in the room. Davey nodded at him a smiled in encouragement, patting Jack on the shoulder before exiting. Spot shook his hand a smiled, telling him he had this. When Mrs. Bowery walked past, she said nothing, but she silently clapped for him and slid by him, causing him to smile and laugh.

"Keep your feet on the ground and your eyes on the stars." The mayor said, patting him on the back. "You got this."

And suddenly, the room was empty, save for a young, cocky, strike leader and an old man who only wanted to improve his own self image.

Joe leaned over his desk. "You think it's easy running this school for all you boys?" He asked. "If this school doesn't look good, I lose my reputation!" He yelled, slamming his fist on the desk.

"And if you try and make this school perfect we could lose our lives!" Jack yelled back. He couldn't pretend anymore. This man had no idea what he and his boys had gone through in their lives. Joe actually looked a bit surprised at Jack's outburst and made no move to speak, shockingly letting the teen continue. "My boys..." Jack started off, trying to keep control of himself. "My boys have been through more than you have in your entire life. Some of them thrown out of their homes when they was too young ta understand what was happenin'. Some of them beaten so bad they's lucky ta be alive. And they was thrown inta orphanages and homes with people that didn't give a damn about 'em. People they didn't know and people that didn't take care of 'em." Jack explained.

Pulitzer sat in silence, staring, emotionless, at the young boy in his room that sounded a lot older than he looked. And he looked very young all of the sudden to the man. After all, Jack was only barely seventeen. "Then they was forced ta come ta these schools. They grew up in New York, trustin' no one but themselves till they met one anotha'. Now we're all each other's got." Jack's voice became low as he continued. "We've also grown up going to the Refuge." He said, gravely. "That damn place! My boys still have nightmares about it!"

"Mr. Kelly, the Refuge is only meant to teach you kids to be respectful-" Pulitzer barely got to finish his sentence before Jack's angry voice was heard again.

"Oh and it does a great job of that!" He said, stepping towards the man he hated for so long, gesturing in the general direction of that prison. "Those guards starved JoJo. They didn't let Albert sleep on a bed. They beat the hell out of Specs! They-" Jack cut himself off. Race told him never to tell anyone. Ever. But he mumbled it out, wanting to make it a point. "They raped Race..." Jack fell backwards into empty chair behind him. The despair of not being able to protect his oldest friend killing him every minute. "And who knows what the hell they're doing ta Crutchie right now." Jack sighed, trying in vein to keep his voice even. "That's my little brother." He stated. "They're all my little brothers."

Pulitzer didn't know. He had known it was bad, but these boys, they were only kids. "Kelly I-"

"Now your tryin' ta send 'em all back there." Jack stood back up, composing himself. "But I won't let ya." He said, stubbornly. "Ya can do whatever ya want with me but ya can't touch them. Never! Ya hear?"

Pulitzer sighed. He stood, adjusting his jacket, his face showing no emotion. "Have a seat Mr. Kelly." He said. "Let's talk."

 **My baby. Race is my everything. I love him and sadly I love to torture him as well. If you continue reading these stories you'll see a lot of that. And I'm happy to inform that this story is almost completely uploaded. Which means I might even have the prologue of the next story up by today. Let me know what you guys are hoping for or what you think might happen in the next few stories of mine. I'd love to hear. And if you want a little sneak peak, let me know.**

 **Also, make sure to check out my other story, Working With What We Got! Let me know if you think I should continue posting it and what you'd like to see in that one as well.**

 **As always, thanks for reading! Make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you'd change or what you'd improve by leaving me a review! Love ya darlings!**


	23. Chapter 23

**Here it is. The last chapter of this crazy story. I hope you guys enjoyed it. And I hope all of you will continue reading the next installments of this universe as I post them. I'll tell you again, you think it got real in the last chapter... man it gets so much worse. Also I thought I'd tell you guys, I only have the prologue and the first chapter done of the next one but the third installment is almost completely done. My mind works in weird ways so I'm sorry.**

 **Here it is. Enjoy!**

Jack exited the front of the school, seeing all of his boys right in the front of the steps that lead to the large doors that stood tall at the entrance of the building. Race was in the lead with all their brothers behind him. Brooklyn was to their side but Spot and Davey stood tall by Race. And off to the side stood the girl who might've been the reason they'd gotten this far. Katherine stood tall, smiling proudly at him. Jack kept his expression solemn as he looked upon the determined, hopeful stares of his brothers. These boys were everything to him. He couldn't live without them so when he spoke the words he did next, he felt his whole world brighten.

"Boys," he spoke calmly. "We won!" He exclaimed, excitedly, jumping up and down a few times before running to his brothers and hugging them all tightly in his arms, assuring them that they wouldn't have to go back to the Refuge.

The mayor walked out of the school happily, taking in the sight of the brothers that were celebrating in front of the school. Then he saw a police car pulling up and he saw every one of them stop and stare. But he just smiled and made his way to it. "Officers," he spoke loudly, gesturing to the back door. "If you please?"

The backdoor was opened and a boy was helped to his feet and handed, gently, a metal crutch to help him walk. "Jack look!" Race shouted, even though his didn't need to as he was in Jack's embrace at the moment. "It's Crutchie!"

"Hiya fellas!" Jack let go of Race and both of them ran up to the younger boy.

"Crutchie!" Jack cried as he threw his arms around his baby brother and held him tightly in his arms. Race wrapped his arms around the boy too and all the others gathered around them and patted him on the back of ruffled his hair.

"I'm so sorry kid." Jack muttered as he held his best friend.

"Hey, it ain't your fault Jack." Crutchie shifted his arms so that he could hug Jack and Race at the same time. "It ain't none of your fault." He promised.

As the mayor was passing by, Jack let go of Crutchie and let the others smother the boy. "Mr. Mayor!" The man turned around and smiled at the boy who had tears of pure relief in his eyes. "Thank you." The boy breathed, extending his hand to the man. The mayor nodded and shook Jack's hand before heading off.

"Hey Jack!" Crutchie called, trying to get the older boys attention from within Race and Albert's arms. They allowed him to crutch over to the strike leader. "Ya still thinkin' bout runnin' off ta Santa Fe?"

Jack stuttered. His brother looked a little scared of the answer that might be given. In fact, all his brothers looked at him, anxiously. But before he could answer, Davey spoke up from behind him.

"Oh come on." Davey scoffed. "Don't ya ever get tired of singin' that same old toon?" He walked up to his friend and put a hand on his shoulder. "What's Santa Fe got that New York ain't? Tarantulas?"

Then another voice spoke. A voice that made Jack feel like a giddy school girl that got butterflies in her stomach every time their crush passed by. "Better yet, what's New York for that Santa Fe ain't?" She asked, wisely. Right then Jack knew; this woman was always right.

"New York's got us." Crutchie offered, putting his free arm around Race and all the boys nodded in agreement. "And we're family." He assured with a smile.

"Plus," Katherine added, quietly. "You've still got one ace up your sleeve."

Jack turned to the girl. "Yeah? And what would that be?" He asked gently.

She smiled. "Me." She said simply. "Wherever you go I'm right by your side." She promised.

Jack's heart skipped a beat. He'd never heard the words come out of someone's mouth that told him he wouldn't ever be alone anymore. His brothers knew they'd always be together but to hear those words from a girl who was willing to give up her simple life for him... it was something else. "For sure?"

"For sure." She said, imitating his voice once again, making him chuckle.

"I've always been a dreamer Katherine." Jack told her. "But it ain't hard. Ya just need ta close your eyes. But now I'm seeing real things that are happening right in front of me. And my dreams mean nothin' without you."

Katherine couldn't help it anymore. She leaned in suddenly and stole another kiss, one that Jack melted into, and all the boys started cheering and teasing them. Race covered Romeo's eyes all the other boys had their fun.

After a few minutes, the crowd had dispersed. Brooklyn had started making their way home after Spot took Jack out of the open and into a nearby alley to give him a hug. Spot Conlon was a mystery to them all. But if he could say there were some people in the world that knew him for who he really was, it was the older Manhattan boys. Then Katherine kissed Jack goodbye and went home. Pulitzer told them all that he expected in class tomorrow and followed his daughters lead. Now the boys all lay around, happily chatting about and laughing and celebrating. Jack sat on the ground in the front of the school. Crutchie sat one one side of him and Race on the other. Romeo sat in his big brother's lap, nodding off, the adrenaline finally crashing.

"Ya alright Crutchie?" Race asked, gently. "They... they touch ya at all?" Crutchie shook his head.

"After the first night, they let me be... but the beating they gave me..." he sighed. "It hurt." Jack wrapped an arm around his shoulders and pulled him close. "It hurt real bad."

"You're safe now. I won't let them touch ya again." Jack assured, running a hand through the younger boys blond hair.

"I'm sorry ya had ta go through that Crutch." Race whispered. "I'm sorry ya all had ta go through this." Jack grabbed the younger boy's wrist, silently telling his friend that he didn't have to continue. But Race shook his head. "Ya wouldn't have done this if they hadn't come after me Jack. If it had been some poor kid ya didn't know, ya wouldn't've done it."

Jack didn't respond, knowing the blond boy was right. If it hadn't been one of his boys, he wouldn't have started this damn revolution.

"I'm sorry, Jack." Race breathed, running a hand through Romeo's hair as Jack wrapped his other arm around Race.

"Not your fault kid. It ain't your fault." Race nodded, wiping at his eyes, not letting his brothers see him so weak. He was the tough one. The one to always make them smile when things went south. He didn't cry. "You're my oldest friend, Race. My brother. I don't know what I'd do without ya. I need ya. 'Long as I have all you boys, it's a fine life."

Race looked around at his brothers. They were laughing and smiling as the sun started to set off in the distance. Crutchie smiled at him with his young, innocent face and Race knew it was all ok. He nodded and repeated Jack's words.

"It's a fine life."

 **Thank you guys so much for reading! I'm so happy that you guys followed this modern take on the newsboys. It was so much fun to write and it's not done yet. Make sure to check in tomorrow for the next installment of this series. It's called An Unexpected Cry For Help and I'm very excited to start posting it. As always, make sure to tell me what you liked, what you didn't, what you would change and what you'd improve by leaving me a review. Thank you so much! Don't forget to check out my other story Working With What We Got. I'll be updating that one soon, hopefully.**

 **Love ya guys! Thank you so so much! Make sure to keep reading my upcoming fics! Love ya so much!**


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